


Gleaming Treasure

by preciousjisung



Series: Roaring Waves, Howling Wind [1]
Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, M/M, Might turn into crack, Mingi and Jongho are the main pairing, Mpreg, Pirate AU, Prepare thyselves for angry Seonghwa, angst maybe??
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2019-11-09
Packaged: 2020-01-01 12:27:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 18
Words: 21,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18334520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/preciousjisung/pseuds/preciousjisung
Summary: One night spent with a stranger he met in a tavern complicated Jongho's rather simple seafaring life - meeting him again even moreso.





	1. [001] Nausea

Jongho was nauseous.

The rocking of the ship on the waves didn’t help, his hands clasping a bucket as he emptied the contents of his stomach and groaned miserably afterward. Jongho wasn’t the type to just get seasick, or at least, he hadn’t in the past five years he’d spent on the _Promise_ ; so he had no doubts that this was something more serious.

He was sick. That was wonderful.

Jongho vomited again, stomach roiling, and curled in on himself, shoving the bucket aside so he could curl up on the floor. He didn’t have the energy to get up and get back into his cot, and he felt like if he tried, he’d just vomit again, and Jongho wasn’t sure he even had the energy for that.

The door swung open, Jongho looking up at it to see that it was Seonghwa who stood in the entrance. He was most likely searching for Jongho because he hadn’t shown up on deck bright and early like he did almost every morning.

The first mate hurried over and kneeled beside him, pressing a hand to Jongho’s forehead and checking for a temperature. “Why are you on the floor, Jongho?”

“Nauseous,” Jongho croaked, his hands resting over his stomach. “I woke up nauseous.”

Seonghwa looked concerned, sliding his hands under Jongho’s knees and shoulders so he could scoop him off of the floor and put him back in the cot. Seonghwa was careful, but Jongho still felt jostled and the sick feeling was worse when he curled up, again resting his hands against his stomach.

“I’ll be back,” Seonghwa promised, moving the bucket so Jongho wouldn’t have a hard time reaching it if he had to vomit again. He ruffled Jongho’s hair and left, the door shutting softly behind him.

Jongho exhaled.

This was far from ideal.

 

* * *

 

Jongho must have fallen asleep while Seonghwa was gone, for he woke up with Yeosang and Seonghwa both standing over him, the first mate still wearing a worried expression and Yeosang’s brows drawn in concentration.

“If it was food poisoning, we would all have it. We all eat the same,” Yeosang insisted. “Sickness isn’t my forte.”

“You’re the saw-bones,” Seonghwa pointed out, voice quiet.

Yeosang crossed his arms. “Saw-bones, yes. I can stitch wounds, set bones and bandage people up. But I’m no good with _illnesses_ , Seonghwa.”

Seonghwa grimaced. “We dock in Efivera in three days. We can find someone there who might know something.”

Yeosang tilted his head at the first mate. “You bring that up to Hongjoong,” he drawled, “and I will get Yunho to help me.”

“Help you what?” Jongho asked, his throat dry and creaky. He could still taste vomit - disgusting.

Yeosang stared down at him, one eyebrow arched. “Someone is going to have to take care of you, and one person can’t do it all by himself.”

“I can take care of myself,” Jongho bluffed.

“Seonghwa told me you couldn’t even get off of the floor today,” remarked Yeosang, shutting down Jongho’s already-weak protest. He turned away from him long enough to fetch a dipper full of water, and helped Jongho sit up so he could drink. “I consider that a very good sign you need someone to look after you.”

“Nagging is Seonghwa’s job,” Jongho mumbled, petulant. He no longer felt nauseous, which was what drove him to sit up the rest of the way (despite Yeosang’s grumbled protests).

“You--”

“I don’t feel nauseous now,” Jongho mumbled. “I want to get up.”

“You really should get some rest instead,” Yeosang suggested. Jungho, however, felt that he’d rested enough. He wanted to get up and around, and get to work on his various duties; with Yeosang undoubtedly trailing him to ensure nothing happened to him, but still. Jongho didn’t want to be confined to his cot.

When they emerged on the deck, Yunho shouted a greeting down from the crows’ nest and then grabbed a line to slide down - but apparently thought better of it and stayed in the nest, returning to glassing the sea after seemingly determining that Jongho was in one piece.

“Yeosang, shouldn’t Jongho be resting?”

Hongjoong, the _Promise_ ’s small but fearsome captain, seemed to materialize out of nowhere. This wasn’t uncommon - it was easy for Hongjoong to slip up on others unnoticed. He and Yeosang were the stealthiest members of the _Promise_ ’s crew, and it had taken Jongho quite some time to adjust to Hongjoong’s “appearing out of thin air”.

He had barely been thirteen years old then, however, and now he was older and just a little bit wiser. More accustomed to the crew, certainly.

“He’s mulish,” Yeosang pointed out, “and insists he’s not nauseous right now.”

“I’m not,” Jongho put in.

Hongjoong frowned. “I’ll take his word for it, for the time being.” With that, he turned on his heel. “We dock in Efivera in three days’ time, so everyone needs to be prepared.”

“We will be, captain,” Yeosang assured.

 

* * *

 

Toward the evening, Jongho was nauseous again, curled up in his cot and staring at the wall in misery.

Once again, it was Seonghwa who came to find him - Yeosang, Hongjoong, and Yunho were probably busy taking care of their last duties before dinner. The first mate opened the door quietly and sighed when he saw him on the cot.

“Nauseous again?”

Jongho nodded.

“I’ll bring you a plate,” Seonghwa promised. “Do you need anything?”

“Water would be amazing,” Jongho answered.

Seonghwa left, and Jongho found himself drifting off.


	2. [002] Efivera

The nausea continued, usually in the mornings but sporadically popping in at other times of day. Jongho spent the better part of mornings curled up on his cot, waiting for the nausea to subside so he could properly start his day.

That nausea combined with a noticeable decline in energy seemed to perturb Yeosang, whose brows were consistently furrowed over the three days that passed between the development of the nausea and their arrival in Efivera. He and Seonghwa hovered often, and Yunho did as well – but he wasn’t as bad as the other two, and gave him more space than they did. Hongjoong was honestly the least overbearing, though even his treatment of Jongho had shifted.

Once his sickness finally subsided enough for him to move around, Jongho left his quarters and headed for the deck. Seonghwa had dropped in long enough to tell him that the _Promise_ was approaching Efivera and that he should come up as soon as he was able.

Yeosang was beside him as soon as Jongho made it onto the deck, the saw-bones intercepting him before he could make it to Hongjoong and Yunho. “You need to stay on the _Promise_ , with Yunho.”

“Huh?” Jongho stared at him in confusion. “But then who’s going to do the fruit run?”

“I am,” Yeosang answered. When Jongho gaped at him, he scowled. “I _am_ capable of doing other things than lurking on the ship, you know.”

“Of course I know that,” Jongho grumbled unhappily. He’d been looking forward to getting off of the ship and doing his fruit run, but knew better than to argue with Yeosang. It wouldn’t get him anywhere, and besides, Yeosang undoubtedly had Hongjoong’s backing and most certainly had Seonghwa’s.

Yeosang ruffled his hair. “Don’t pout, Jongho. I’ll see if I can find some answers about your nausea, too. By next docking, you should be fine.”

“I’m not pouting,” Jongho denied fiercely. “Don’t forget the apples.”

“I won’t forget the apples.”

It wasn’t long before Hongjoong, Seonghwa and Yeosang had dispersed into the crowds of people and Jongho and Yunho were alone on the _Promise_. Jongho chose to stretch out on the boards of the deck and close his eyes, one arm draped across them. At least he could relax on the deck, rather than trapped in his cabin or somewhere else below, while he waited for them to return.

Yunho paced the deck, the designated guard of the _Promise_ while the others were gone. There weren’t very many who would choose to tangle with Yunho; there were few brave enough. His size and the various weaponry he wore for the world to see (as well as the weapons he wore hidden) were powerful deterrents for most. Jongho had been intimidated by him when they first met. After adjusting to life on the _Promise_ and beginning to let his walls down, however, Jongho had realized he had nothing to fear. He wasn’t Yunho’s enemy – Yunho was more like an older brother.

Not that Jongho had ever had an older brother to compare it to; he merely assumed having an older brother would be much like having a Yunho around.

Jongho sighed. The sun was warm on his face and the deck warm against his back, but he was restless, and got to his feet to join Yunho in his pacing. The tall pirate also ruffled his hair, lips spreading in an infectious grin when Jongho scowled.

“I know, I know. Being cooped up on the _Promise_ with me is the most terrible thing,” Yunho drawled.

Jongho wrinkled his nose. “You aren’t the problem, and you know it. I was looking forward to getting off of the ship.”

“Eh. Well, Yeosang said you should be fine by the next time we dock.” Yunho paused to observe another ship as it docked, his eyes narrowing. The expression was gone in a moment, however, and Jongho wondered if maybe he imagined the change. “Life is that way sometimes.”

“If you’re attempting to sound wise, you aren’t succeeding,” Jongho told him, and found the world turning upside down shortly thereafter. Scooped up and deposited across Yunho’s shoulders, the youngest member of the _Promise_ ’s crew shrieked. “Put me down!”

Yunho ignored his protests, and continued his pacing with Jongho over his shoulders.

“Hey! Showing off for Yeosang only works when he is on the ship! Put me down!” Jongho squirmed, but didn’t want to fall, and thus resorted to pinching Yunho’s arm. “Yunho!”

Yunho continued to ignore him, and Jongho resigned himself to his fate. If Yunho wanted to carry him around like a protesting sack of vegetables, then Jongho wouldn’t stop him. Couldn’t stop him, really; he didn’t want to fall, and while he was strong, Yunho was stronger from years of fighting and hard physical labor. Jongho trusted that he’d put him down eventually, anyway; while Yunho was strong enough to carry him around on his shoulders for long periods of time, it wasn’t the best of ideas when Yunho was supposed to be guarding the _Promise_.

Then again, Jongho never knew about Yunho. He might engage in battle with Jongho still slung across his broad shoulders, and that was equally terrifying and amusing to picture.

 

* * *

 

Jongho was, thankfully, no longer slung over Yunho’s shoulders when Yeosang returned from his errands. Instead, he was seated on the deck, legs drawn up and knees open as he stared at the gangplank, waiting for the other members of the _Promise_ ’s meager crew to return. He and Yunho had been mostly silent aside from the occasional banter, and Jongho had caught more than one worried glance that made him furrow his brows and chew on his lower lip. He didn't want, or need, his crewmates to be worried about him.

Bearing bundles of fruit and supplies he’d need for future medical endeavors, Yeosang finally ventured up the gangplank. Despite being wary of the uncharacteristically stormy expression that Yeosang was wearing, Jongho scrambled to his feet to help him with the supplies he was carrying.

As they were headed below to store the supplies, Yeosang didn’t speak. Jongho wasn’t sure whether the saw-bones was angry, irritated or otherwise; his expression wasn’t one that Jongho could interpret. Yeosang was rarely an open book and in this instance, he certainly wasn’t one.

They were putting away the fruit when Yeosang sighed, short and frustrated. “Jongho,” he started, “I think we need to have a very serious conversation.”

His tone was what made Jongho look up at him, eyes wide and questioning from where he was bent over to pick up and move a crate out of the way. It wasn’t Yeosang’s usual tone; it wasn’t even his disappointed tone, and that was something Jongho had heard often, whether directed at himself or other members of the crew when they did something stupid and Yeosang had to deal with the aftermath. To say it caught his attention would be an understatement.

“About what?” he asked, uncertain.

Yeosang shook his head. “I need to talk to Seonghwa first.”

Confused, but not brave enough to press for more information when Yeosang was behaving so oddly, Jongho moved the crate and helped Yeosang finish storing the fruit in silence.

When the saw-bones and youngest crew member returned to the deck, Hongjoong and Seonghwa still had not returned. That was expected, though, and Jongho would have been surprised to see them back aboard the _Promise_ so soon. The sun wasn’t even setting yet, and the captain and first mate tended to stay off the ship until late at night when at port. Given the chance, Yunho would vanish for long periods of time as well, usually holing himself up in a tavern and drinking fools under the table. Yeosang chose to stay on the ship, and Jongho…

Jongho wasn’t one or the other. At times, he left the ship, and at others he would stay aboard with the saw-bones.

Yeosang took one look at Yunho and exhaled through his nostrils. “Get on, but I am not going to be retrieving you from any inns and I’m not making you a hangover remedy.”

Halfway down the gangplank, Yunho turned back to grin at Yeosang. “I’m sure you won’t.”

“I _won’t_.”

“You always do,” Yunho reminded cheekily.

Jongho rested his hands on the rail, staring out at other ships in the dock and ignoring the playful bickering of his crewmates. Most of the ships were manned by skeleton crews, most of the sailors likely out on shore leave; Jongho absently wondered how easy the crew of the _Promise_ would find it to raid some of those vessels.

They weren’t there to raid, however; they were there on a short resupply, and apparently an evening of fun for Hongjoong, Seonghwa and Yunho. For Yeosang and Jongho, it would be a quiet evening. Jongho wasn’t averse to that.

Peace and quiet sounded nice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi I don't know how to write


	3. [003] Blood

Jongho should have seen this coming.

Peace and quiet would have been nice, sure, but he should have known better than to think the crew of the _Promise_ would actually get it.

And what, exactly, was going on to disrupt any trace of peace and quiet he and Yeosang might have had? Well…

It had started, apparently, with Yunho and a tavern. Sadly, that was how most things started – Yunho, a tavern, and more often than not other thick-skulled idiots who got to drinking and then couldn’t keep their tongues or their tempers in check. Jongho imagined that someone had said something Yunho hadn’t agreed with, and it had evolved from there. A fight in the tavern that likely resulted in the involved parties being thrown out, which usually meant they’d just fight in the streets.

Then somehow Hongjoong and Seonghwa had gotten involved, and more of the enemy party as well.

“Stay here and guard the damn ship,” Yeosang ordered. He was angry, and that was honestly terrifying. Jongho nodded shortly, not daring to say anything when Yeosang was in one of his moods, and watched him leave.

The brawl wasn’t far from the ship, but it was far enough that someone had to stay behind and guard it. Jongho wasn’t sure how he felt about having to stay behind – on one hand, he really didn’t feel like brawling. But on the other, he wanted to be there when Yeosang dragged Hongjoong and Yunho back to the _Promise_ by their ears (because undoubtedly, Yunho had caused the chaos and Hongjoong had only encouraged it).

Oh well. Someone had to guard the _Promise_ , and that wasn’t something that could be expected of Yeosang under such conditions.

With that in mind, Jongho started pacing the deck, quietly taking stock of his own weaponry. He carried a multitude of concealed knives and two flintlocks worn openly; he was no Yunho, who liked to carry as much weaponry as he possibly could. Jongho wore what he could hide and could use, and of course the pistols that had been a gift from Hongjoong.

There was activity on the dock, and Jongho twisted to observe as a group of men spilled onto another ship. It seemed that some of them were in disagreement, from the rough manner in which they pushed at one another as they were almost herded onto the ship.

The creaking of boards drew Jongho’s attention from the men boarding a ship to a trio who made their way onto the dock; Jongho met eyes with the man in the lead and found himself throwing his body to the side, landing in a forward roll.

It had been wise of him to move, a gunshot echoing in the air. Jongho could hear the approach of footsteps, charging up the gangplank; he stayed on one knee but turned to face the gangplank, his pistols at the ready.

Two of the men were felled by shots from his flintlocks, but the third was not. He charged Jongho and the young pirate rolled to the side, coming onto his feet and drawing one of his knives. He blocked a punch, hand guiding it out of the way as he moved to the side, knife flashing across his attacker’s ribs. A bad target, a bad angle. Jongho twisted away from a hand that grabbed for him and jumped back to keep from being stabbed, knocking the hand that held the knife aside and stepping in to stomp on his attacker’s foot and spit in his face. A moment later his knife dragged across the man’s throat, blood spattering Jongho’s face.

He raised his free hand to wipe the blood away from his eyes and mouth, but froze when he heard a creak behind him. He whirled, knife arcing through the air before coming to an abrupt halt when he realized it was Seonghwa behind him.

The first mate looked from Jongho to the man on the deck and grunted. “Any idea why these three decided to invite themselves aboard?”

Suddenly feeling tired and queasy again, Jongho shook his head and moved away from the bloody mess to sit down on the deck. “I don’t know. One of them shot at me and then they barged aboard, so I killed him and the other two. I didn’t ask questions.”

Seonghwa nodded. “You should go below and clean the blood off of yourself before it dries. You might give Yunho a scare otherwise.”

“This isn’t the first time I’ve killed, or been covered in blood,” Jongho snorted.

“No, but this is the first time we’ve left you alone on the ship,” Seonghwa answered softly, so softly Jongho might have missed it if he wasn’t actually paying attention.

The young pirate swallowed and said no more, instead vanishing below and heading to his quarters to clean up.

 

* * *

 

By the time Jongho had scrubbed off most of the blood, changed into a fresh shirt, and made it back onto the deck, the other three members of their crew had returned. Yunho had dumped the three bodies overboard and was swabbing the deck, blood smeared on his cheek - most likely from the tussle he and the others had. Hongjoong was standing by the rail, staring out at the city; Yeosang and Seonghwa stood off to the side, talking quietly enough that Jongho couldn’t hear them, and the other two probably couldn’t either.

Hongjoong turned toward Jongho, evidently hearing his footsteps, and gestured for him to join him beside the rail. The youngest of the crew hurried to obey, stopping at Hongjoong’s right.

“Feeling any better?” the captain asked, as he turned back to watching the dock and city.

“...yeah,” Jongho lied. His stomach was still turning, but maybe that was from the blood his face had been washed in.

Hongjoong didn’t look like he believed Jongho, but he didn’t press the subject and instead gazed at Yunho, who was still cleaning the deck and whistling cheerfully. “Seonghwa informed me you had an incident while we were gone.”

Unsure of what to say, Jongho fidgeted, his eyes on the bloody water that swirled over the deck.

Hongjoong cleared his throat and patted Jongho on the shoulder. “As far as Yunho knows, Seonghwa was here at the time.”

The captain moved away, and Jongho sighed, hanging his head. He knew why Hongjoong and Seonghwa didn’t want Yunho knowing the truth, but he didn’t agree with it; sooner or later, Yunho would need to realize that Jongho could take care of himself.

“Jongho,” Yeosang called, and the young pirate twisted. Yeosang was beckoning for him to follow him and the first mate below, and with a sigh, Jongho trudged after them.

“Your… nausea,” Yeosang started, as he stalked into the room that served as their infirmary. “Is it only in the mornings?”

Confused, Jongho wet his lips. “...No, it’s been in the evenings and afternoons on occasion.”

“And have you been nauseous every morning?” Seonghwa asked, closing the door behind them and moving to stand beside Yeosang.

Jongho leaned back against the door and blinked at the two older pirates, the interrogation making him nervous and fidgety. “I… yes? Why is that even important? Is that even important?”

Seonghwa sighed. “Just humor us, Jongho.”

Chewing the inside of his lip, the youngest in the room nodded. “Okay.”

Yeosang and Seonghwa exchanged an awkward glance, the uneasy tension in the room rising. Jongho swallowed and looked between them, wondering if he should run out of the room while he had the chance.

Seeming to lose some nonverbal argument, Yeosang turned to Jongho. “We won’t know for sure until... _unless_ you start to show–”

Even more confused, Jongho blinked again. “Start to show? What are you talking about?”

Seonghwa passed his hands over his face and exhaled sharply, shooting a glare at Yeosang. “You can't skirt around the topic, Yeosang. Jongho, on our last stop, what did you do?”

Jongho swallowed again. “What do you mean?”

“Did you bed someone?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha... it's almost midnight and I wrote this half asleep so yes it is trash. Trashier than my usual writing. Yikes. 
> 
> Anyway, I'm sorry for not updating and going MIA, had some things happen that made me uninspired to write.


	4. [004] An Awkward Conversation

The sound of a feather drifting to the floor probably could have been heard in the infirmary, the silence in the room deafening. Jongho was unable to meet the gaze of either of the older pirates, focusing anywhere but at their faces; his eyes had found a loose thread on one of Yeosang’s sleeves that he pointedly stared at so that he didn’t have to look either of them in the eye.

“Jongho.” Yeosang’s voice was quiet, not exactly soft. Yeosang was rougher around the edges than Seonghwa was, incapable of achieving the same levels of gentleness and patience that the eldest of the crew seemed to have in abundance.

Shame colored Jongho’s cheeks a dark rose, eyes flitting up briefly before they focused back on the dangling white thread. “Why… why does it even matter?”

Seonghwa and Yeosang shared another one of those _looks_ , the ones where they seemed to be conversing silently, and once again it was Yeosang who spoke up. “Is that a yes, Jongho?”

“ _Yeosang_ ,” Seonghwa hissed in reprimand, and the saw-bones fell silent with a huff. Softer, the first mate murmured, “You need to tell us, Jongho.”

Jongho buried his burning face in his hands, his shoulders hunching defensively. Yeosang’s gaze was both piercing and heavy, Seonghwa’s only moderately less so, and the weight made him want to sink into the floor. “I—”

_Yes_.

Jongho had lain with a man he met in a tavern. The _Promise_ had been docked, and he’d taken the chance to get off of the ship and enjoy himself for a period while the other members of the crew were elsewhere. Spending his night with a stranger had not been the plan, and Jongho had kept it as a secret.

Jongho knew, however, that he could neither distract Seonghwa and Yeosang, nor lie to them. Both were focused, and he merely couldn’t bring himself to tell them anything but the truth.

“—yes.”

Yeosang sighed through his nose. “We’re going to have to wait and see what happens now,” he remarked, seemingly more to Seonghwa than to Jongho. Rather than responding to the saw-bones’ remark, the first mate approached the youngest of the crew and wrapped him in his arms, letting him hide his face in his shoulder so that he didn’t have to face his embarrassment, Seonghwa, or Yeosang.

“Why did I have to answer that?” Jongho demanded, voice muffled in Seonghwa’s shirt.

The first mate’s sigh was full of dread. “You might be pregnant, Jongho.”

His first response was to laugh, awkward and disbelieving. Seonghwa had to be joking, even though it would be entirely out of character for him to joke about something so serious. He didn’t seem to be joking, however, and he didn’t laugh along with Jongho.

The youngest member of the crew pulled away from Seonghwa and swallowed drily when he saw the man’s somber expression. “You… you can’t be serious.”

“How I wish we were not,” Yeosang responded, without an ounce of humor in his voice. Jongho took one glance at him and had to avert his gaze again, this time focusing on Seonghwa’s boots.

It wasn’t like Yeosang was actually angry with him, it was just his default facial expression. Under the circumstances, it was hard for Jongho to look at him.

“You.” Jongho swallowed again. “You think I’m… you think that I’m pregnant.”

“Yes,” Yeosang answered flatly. Jongho flinched, and Seonghwa sighed, drawing him back into his arms and petting his hair. It made him feel like a child again, and Jongho let it comfort him, trying to pretend for just five seconds that they’d never had that conversation.

 

* * *

 

As soon as Yeosang and Seonghwa had let him leave the infirmary, Jongho had vanished into his quarters with the intent to not emerge for the rest of the evening. Curled on his cot, he stared at the wall, gazing but not really seeing.

_Pregnant_.

He rolled onto his back and rubbed his eyes, feeling the itch of tears starting to well up. He didn’t want to start crying, that was the last thing he wanted. If he _was_ pregnant, that would be a burden as it was on his comrades. He couldn’t afford to be any weaker.

Someone rapped on the door and Jongho rolled back onto his side, wondering if he could pretend that he was sleeping and be left alone. When Hongjoong’s voice echoed from the other side of the door, however, Jongho gave up on that idea and sat up, calling for the captain to enter.

“Seonghwa said you weren’t feeling well,” the captain started.

Jongho drew his legs up so the man could sit on the end of his cot, and grimaced. It wasn’t the best conversation starter, and both of them knew it, but Hongjoong was trying. “Not really. I just wanted to be alone for the night.”

Hongjoong made a soft noise of understanding. “I’ll leave you alone, then, but Seonghwa would have my head if I let you go to sleep on an empty stomach. I’ll be right back.”

True to his word, the captain wasn’t gone long. When he returned, he came bearing food, looking immensely pleased with himself. “Here, eat this. Seonghwa’s close to coming and force-feeding you.”

“That’s really not necessary,” Jongho sighed, but he sat up and took the plate out of Hongjoong’s hands nonetheless. “...Thank you.”

The captain beamed at Jongho and leaned over to ruffle his hair. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Jongho. Start feeling better, yeah?”

The smile didn’t reach Jongho’s eyes. “I’ll try.”

Once the captain was gone, Jongho stared down at the plate he had been handed. He didn’t need someone to ensure that he was fed; didn’t need Seonghwa hovering like some sort of mother chicken. He could take care of himself.

_But can you?_ a voice whispered. _And what if you're with child?_

The wood of the plate cracked in Jongho’s grasp, and the young pirate glanced down, startled. Fortunately, there wasn’t a large split, but it was certainly noticeable and Jongho felt shame creep in for perhaps the hundredth time in one night.

He exhaled and set the plate aside, laying back down and rolling onto his side. He just wanted to sleep off the events of the day, from being sprayed with blood to being forced into an uncomfortable conversation with Yeosang and Seonghwa.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi tis me i couldn't write anything worth a shit so here's this. hopefully there shall be less angst soon and longer chapters.


	5. [005] Privateers

Jongho woke the next morning to find a disappointed Seonghwa standing over his cot, arms folded and expression full of disapproval. Startled, Jongho sat up and scrambled back to put a little more space between himself and the first mate, the man’s eyes following him but expression never changing.

Unfortunately, before Jongho had a chance to say anything or greet Seonghwa, he found himself rolling to the other side of his cot and heaving into the bucket that remained stationed at his bedside for instances of nausea like this one.

When he was done, Jongho croaked, “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough,” the first mate answered cryptically, and shuffled out of the room. Jongho vomited again, propping himself up on one hand while the other rested over his stomach.

Seonghwa returned a few moments later with water for Jongho to rinse his mouth out. Then Seonghwa left again, and Jongho dragged himself off of his cot on shaky legs. He stripped out of his dirty clothes and dressed himself in a fresh new shirt and pants, unable to help peering at his stomach in search of a sign of pregnancy.

Shortly after he was finished, the first mate came back, armed with a chunk of bread, an apple, and a mug of water.

“You never ate last night,” Seonghwa remarked as he held out the apple and the bread.

Jongho grimaced, taking the apple from the first mate’s hand. “Wasn’t hungry.”

Seonghwa sighed through his nose, a sigh that was a mixture of irritation and concern. Jongho was accustomed to that sigh, though he usually heard it directed at Hongjoong and Yunho rather than himself. Nonetheless, he knew exactly what it was.

“I’m sorry,” he finally said, and then took a bite out of the apple. Seonghwa’s brow furrowed; probably because Jongho hadn’t broken the fruit in half, as he was wont to do. The older pirate didn’t remark on it, however, and merely waited patiently as Jongho ate the fruit, and then handed him the bread and the mug of water.

“Come up whenever you’re ready,” he instructed, and then took his leave.

 

* * *

 

The _Promise_ had left port in the night prior, and was making her merry way across the waves when Jongho emerged on deck. He was greeted by a cheerful whistle from Yunho, the tallest member of the crew sliding down one of the lines. From the looks of it, he had been pestering Yeosang, who stood in the crows’ nest vaguely resembling a bird with ruffled feathers. Yunho tended to have that effect on Yeosang, often leaving him ruffled and irritable.

Once Yunho landed on the deck, he bounded to Jongho like one of the puppies they had seen in a village three months prior. “Are you feeling any better today?” he asked, wearing a grin that stretched from ear to ear when he slung his arm around Jongho’s shoulders.

Jongho hummed, shrugging his shoulders in lieu of verbal answer.

The young pirate gazed out across the horizon, squinting at the silhouette of what seemed to be another ship making its approach. Three sharp whistles from the crow’s nest confirmed that, and two more sent Jongho in search of their ship’s captain.

He checked the captain’s quarters first, but Hongjoong wasn’t there; turning, he darted to the navigation room, but the captain wasn’t there either. He wasn’t on the orlop deck or at the capstan, so Jongho carried his search even deeper into the bowels of the ship, heading for the magazine. Hongjoong wasn’t there, and Jongho growled his frustration.

Perhaps the captain was in the cargo hold.

Shutting the magazine behind him, Jongho bolted for the hold, crashing through the door without any form of grace and distracting Hongjoong from where he seemed to be categorizing cargo.

“Is something the matter?” the captain asked, wide-eyed from where he was hovering by a stack of barrels with his log-book.

“There’s a ship,” Jongho answered. “Flying royal colors.”

Hongjoong’s expression contorted into the steely one that appeared before every encounter, and he set his logbook aside. Hands on two of the flintlocks belted at his waist, he strode for the stairs, and Jongho followed him like a second shadow. Along the way Seonghwa joined them, falling in step with their captain. He must have heard the whistles, for he’d donned all of his weapons and the hat and eyepatch he only wore in combat.

Hongjoong might have been captain, but Seonghwa was easily as imposing, if not moreso.

The trio emerged onto the main deck to find Yunho pacing back and forth and Yeosang still in the crows’ nest, spyglass held up to one eye while he watched the approach of the other ship. It had gotten closer, close enough for the crewmates standing on the deck to faintly make out the royal flags flapping in the wind.

Hongjoong grimaced. “Ready cannons,” he ordered, and Jongho and Yunho jumped to action, preparing their cannons to be fired. Theirs was a small crew, but it was functional. Years of working together under Hongjoong’s guidance had polished them into a well-oiled machine.

Their captain issued no more orders, instead helping Seonghwa ready more of the cannons. With the arsenal prepared to fire, he whistled for Yeosang to come down from the crows’ nest, and the saw-bones obeyed, grabbing a rope and sliding down as Yunho had before they’d noticed the approaching ship.

Once both of his feet were firmly on the deck, Yeosang crossed the deck to stand at Hongjoong’s left, Seonghwa taking position at the captain’s right. Jongho and Yunho stood by the cannons, ready to man them at a moment’s notice.

“Warship?” Hongjoong asked.

Yeosang shook his head. “Privateering vessel,” he answered shortly. “Vikarian, from the flags.”

Yunho made a noise of disgust at the word privateer and scowled at the approaching ship. “We can blow them out of the water, right, Hongjoong?”

The captain’s eyes were steelier than Jongho had seen them in a long time - but then, the _Promise_ had a history with Vikarian privateers, so it wasn’t entirely unexpected. “Wait for them to be in range, Yunho, we don’t want to waste munitions.”

It was as clear a permission as one could come by on the _Promise_ , and Yunho’s answering grin was savage. Even Yeosang’s lips twitched in the slightest hint of a smile, and Jongho felt relaxed even despite the battle around the corner.

This was his home.

 

* * *

 

The privateers were left behind them, their vessel in flames and sinking steadily. Jongho gazed at the carnage, standing at the rail of the poop deck with Yunho. The older pirate looked satisfied, a tiny smile on his lips as they watched the ship go down.

He put his arm around Jongho’s shoulders and turned him away from the sight, however, steering him toward the sterncastle deck. The young pirate didn’t protest, listening to Seonghwa hum a shanty under his breath while he stood at the helm.

“One less privateer ship in the world,” Yunho remarked, squeezing Jongho around the shoulders. Jongho leaned into him, not putting all of his body weight on him but not fully supporting himself either. Yunho didn’t complain, or react much at all, merely changing his stride to compensate. Seonghwa sighed at them when they walked past, and Yeosang let out an ugly snort.

“Careful, Yunho, one of these days you’ll be unable to refuse Jongho anything.”

Jongho tilted his head. “He’s already that way,” he remarked, and Yeosang rolled his eyes while Hongjoong laughed, eyes crinkling up and bright teeth showing.

The _Promise_ was Jongho's home, and the crew was his family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was all excited for the sea battle and then couldn't write it sjljbsgbdlg I'm sorry ;;; w ;;; but have a semi-soft ending for this chapter uwu


	6. [006] The Storm

Jongho woke with a start, drenched in sweat and heart pounding. He sat upright, his eyes making out the familiar surroundings of his quarters as well as they could given the darkness. In a panic, his hands flew to his abdomen, worming under his shirt to find nothing but smooth skin.

After a moment, he touched his face with first one hand and then the other. His fingers and palms were dry, not slicked with a sticky viscous substance as they had been in his nightmare, and the young pirate finally dared exhale.

Relief, however, was short-lived.

The ship lurched hard enough to send Jongho sprawling, barely able to catch the edge of his cot in time to keep from falling onto the floor. He gathered himself and rolled out of the cot, running from his quarters and heading for the deck as the _Promise_ lurched again.

Despite the lurching of the ship, Jongho ascended to the deck quickly, only to discover that it was storming; Seonghwa and Yunho were fighting against the wills of the storm as best as they could, but not having much success. The _Promise_ was being batted around by wind and sea like a toy that a cat had taken interest in.

Undoubtedly, Hongjoong and Yeosang were also on their way up to the deck, but Jongho wasn’t sure what any of them could do except secure the ship as best as they could in preparations to ride out the storm. Thunder crackled overhead, spurring the young pirate into motion to secure their cannons so they’d stop slip-sliding around the deck. While Yunho and Seonghwa were otherwise engaged, he found a coil of rope and started tying the cannons together so he could lash them up where they wouldn’t slide around and potentially hurt a member of the crew in the storm or go overboard.

It wasn’t long before Hongjoong was at his side, helping him roll and tie up their cannons while Yeosang joined Seonghwa and Yunho at the helm. Jongho paid them no mind, focused on the task at hand. The rain was cold and hard and stung where it struck his skin but he grit his teeth and bore it; this wasn’t his first storm aboard the _Promise_. He could handle the chilly rain and the battering winds.

“Go below and check the cargo, make sure it’s secured!” Hongjoong shouted over the pounding rain. The captain didn’t lose his balance when the ship lurched once again, but Jongho did, and almost fell. He caught himself, though, and nodded in response to Hongjoong’s order.

The young pirate ran back below, cold rainwater going with him and his bare feet making slapping noises against the wood as he raced for the hold. He was almost there when the ship lurched yet again and he fell, catching himself on his forearms. The _Promise_ was tossed by the waves yet again, and Jongho waited for her to still for a few moments before he stood up again and continued on toward the cargo hold. The sooner he could finish the task Hongjoong had given him, the sooner he could be going back to the deck and trying to lend a hand to the other members of the crew.

The hold was in varying levels of disarray, some things only minorly askew and others in complete chaos. Jongho stepped out of the way of a rolling barrel and heaved a sigh; straightening out and securing their cargo was going to take him forever. But Hongjoong wanted him to ensure everything was secured, and that was what he was going to do. It was the entire reason he was in the cargo hold during a storm that tossed the _Promise_ around like she was a toy.

Jongho went after the barrel that was now rolling in the opposite direction and caught it, lifting it and settling it upright to secure it loosely against the wall. However, when the sea tossed the ship yet again, the barrel broke free and rolled toward him. Jongho dove out of its path, narrowly evading a stack of crates when he rolled to his feet.

Heart pounding, he filed away the necessity to organize the hold for later thought and went back after the barrel.

 

* * *

 

Exhausted from battling the storm and chasing cargo back and forth in the hold, Jongho dragged himself onto the main deck. Tired and weak-legged, he staggered toward the empty stretch of boards beside Yunho, eager to lay down and let the sun dry him out while he caught a short nap.

Apparently too tired to even walk across the deck, Jongho slipped and felt himself toppling over toward the side of the ship. A hand caught him by the bicep, however, and pulled him back to his feet.

“Easy,” Seonghwa murmured. He kept his hand on Jongho’s arm and steered him toward the center of the deck.

Jongho stopped and dropped beside Yunho. Seonghwa sighed at them but moved on, climbing onto the forecastle deck to sink down on the boards there.

The sun was shining once more, the soft breeze blowing cold against Jongho’s wet skin. He shivered, but knew it would be warmer once he was dried and let himself relax with a long yawn. The other members of the crew were in a similar state of exhaustion, all sprawled across the deck of the _Promise_ save Hongjoong. Standing firm on the sterncastle deck with a spyglass in hand, their captain hadn’t given in to his fatigue.

For a few long moments Jongho stared over at Hongjoong, admiring him. Despite being slight of build, the captain was sturdy and strong in both mind and body. Jongho looked up to him, and had since Hongjoong had taken him in when he was thirteen.

Jongho tore his gaze away and stared up at the sky, but eventually let his eyes slide shut, the sun’s rays warm on his face. The deck was still slick with rain and seawater, but it would eventually dry out. As would the members of the crew who were strewn across it, Yeosang already asleep and Yunho nearly there.

Jongho sighed.

The crew had made it through yet another storm.

There were some damages to the _Promise_ that would have to be repaired, and more work that would have to be done in the cargo hold, but for the time being the exhausted crew could rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm sorry this update took me so long sfshbsjfhs i had a hard time writing some parts of this chapter and heh guess what it's short too!!! djgnkjgfkd kms


	7. [007] Collision

The fog was thick that night, obscuring everything from vision. It was hard to see past one’s own face even on the deck, and practically impossible to make anything out beyond arm’s length. Seeing anything out on the water was nigh-on impossible and a pointless endeavor, one that was more likely to result in strained eyes than anything else.

Unable to sleep, in part because of the weather, Jongho stood on the sterncastle deck with his hand on the rail and listened to the water as it lapped against the sides of the _Promise_. The sea was calm, a welcome change from the storm of the night prior, and Jongho relaxed as he breathed in the cool night air.

The tension returned, however, when the young pirate heard the soft sounds that alerted him to the presence of another ship looming somewhere close, hidden in the fog. It wasn’t even as though it was intentional, considering that a person could barely see past their own nose in the fog. Unless the other ship had a mage that was conjuring it, they were in the same blind state as Jongho and the _Promise_. Despite that, Jongho still turned to head to the captain’s cabin and retrieve Hongjoong, just in case.

The young pirate was almost to the quarter deck, halfway down the ladder, when he heard footsteps on the deck. He sprang down lightly, landing on his feet, and ventured in the direction that the steps came from.

It was only Yunho, who paused to listen to the sound of the other ship and waved for Jongho to carry on with what he was doing when he saw the youngest of the _Promise_ ’s crew.

Feeling more at ease knowing Yunho was on the deck, Jongho carried on his merry way. He maneuvered through the ship with footfalls that were hopefully soft enough to not disturb Yeosang, who slept very light and very little. He was not only a dangerous person to rouse, but also someone with a tendency to neglect his own need for rest.

Upon reaching the cabin, Jongho raised his hand and knocked; soft, but loud enough that Hongjoong would be able to hear it in the silence. A soft rustle on the other side of the door told Jongho he was correct in his assumption that the captain would be awake. Sometimes, Hongjoong was as bad as Yeosang.

The door swung open just far enough to reveal Hongjoong in the doorway, still wearing his boots but not his coat; standard for when he retired to his quarters and did work that required papers and planning and other things Jongho only half-understood. A moment later, the door was nudged open farther by Seonghwa, rubbing the last remnants of sleep from his eyes. Jongho felt a pang of guilt for waking the first mate, but neither he nor Hongjoong seemed bothered by the intrusion – though Hongjoong did seem to be waiting for an explanation.

Jongho cleared his throat. “There’s a ship approaching in the fog. It’s close.”

The captain nodded and vanished from the doorway, returning a moment later with coat in hand. He took the lead, pulling the garment on and freeing his long hair from the collar. Jongho followed him, Seonghwa bringing up the rear and stopping long enough to divert and wake Yeosang.

When the saw-bones joined them, he was silent but wore the expression of irritation that was always slow to smooth out after being woken. Seonghwa looked no worse for wear, although that was unsurprising. The first mate was one of two members of the _Promise_ ’s crew who the saw-bones would not attempt to stab for rousing him from his slumber. The other was, unsurprisingly, Jongho.

The group of four emerged on the deck, the thick fog that blanketed the deck wrapping around them as they separated. Hongjoong headed for the forecastle, while the first mate hurried in the direction of the sterncastle and Yeosang—

—Yeosang merely vanished.

In the thick fog, there was no way for them to make out where the other ship was, or if there was only one. Jongho shuddered at the thought of sailing into a naval fleet by accident. The _Promise_ would certainly be blown apart under those circumstances.

_Thunk_.

Jongho nearly lost his footing when the _Promise_ rocked, a tremor resulting from another ship knocking into her. Seonghwa called out something impolite in Velsh, and the captain answered in kind.

_“Edam ethal, kivaras igada Wooyoung? Sehram!”_

Jongho blinked in surprise, and tiptoed forward along the deck. _“Essada pilar?”_

There was silence from the other ship for the moment, and then a stream of excited babble answered Jongho’s question. Seonghwa slowly became visible as he made his approach, taking a station beside Jongho and gazing at him questioningly.

_“Sh’el Essada jipilar, Komun pilar?”_ Jongho called, and the babble stopped.

“Yes, we speak Common!” the man on the other ship replied.

Seonghwa gave Jongho one of those looks that spoke of disapproval, and a hint of curiosity as well. Perhaps Jongho shouldn’t have been so quick to converse with the strangers on the other ship.

“Forgive us for running into your ship, Wooyoung doesn’t know how to steer.” The voice was deep, pleasant, and f—

“It wasn’t my fault! You’re just a bad captain, anyway.”

“Maybe if this crew had more than three people, we wouldn’t have these problems. I—”

The deep-voiced man, apparently the captain, sighed. “Ah, yeah, forgive my crew, too.”

Somewhere on the forecastle, Hongjoong snorted. “Our _Promise_ has been through worse, I assure you.”

Some of the tension seemed to leak out of Seonghwa’s frame when the captain spoke, and the first mate vanished back into the fog. Jongho let out a breath that he didn’t know he’d been holding and took a step back, colliding with a warm chest.

His default reaction was to kick the person behind him in the shin, but thankfully Yunho knew Jongho’s reactions well and moved his leg out of the way.

“Relax, it’s just me,” he laughed quietly, reaching out to ruffle Jongho’s hair. He dodged away from the hand with a scowl, folding his arms over his chest.

“Don’t sneak up on me,” the youngest of the Promise’s crew hissed angrily. Rather than replying, Yunho hooked an arm around Jongho’s shoulders and aggressively ruffled his hair with his free hand.

Attempting to stomp on Yunho’s foot, or perhaps pull his ear, distracted Jongho from the other ship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yippee it's late i'm going to bed this is even more trash than normal h e h :'3


	8. [008] Crow's Nest

The nausea had returned, and Jongho spent the better part of his morning curled over a bucket, heaving until he felt like he was going to cough up his insides.

When Jongho was finally able to leave his quarters and pail behind and make it to the deck, the sun was shining, the fog having cleared sometime in the night. As far as the weather was concerned, it was a nice morning, the temperature warm but not hot and a mischievous breeze catching Jongho’s hair when he stepped onto the deck. The young pirate greeted Yeosang and Yunho with a wave, which was returned by both of them. Hongjoong and Seonghwa were standing on the sterncastle, heads together and speaking quietly with their backs turned to the bow.

The ship from the night prior was nowhere in sight, most likely having gone on its way as soon as the fog had cleared. It was better that way; Jongho didn’t know if it was a pirate ship or not, and even if it had been, pirate ships didn’t exactly stick together.

It had been unexpected to encounter a ship with crew members that spoke Essada. It had been years since Jongho had even heard the language, much less on the open seas.

Perhaps Essa now had a navy… but they were far from the waters of Essa.

Another possibility was, of course, pirates. Perhaps this crew was from Essa, but had taken to the seas. The man had spoken Essada flawlessly, without even the traces of accent Jongho was accustomed to on the rare occasion he heard Essada spoken in a distant market or on a ship the _Promise_ raided.

Jongho doubted that, though. One did not merely _leave_ Essa.

“Essada, hmm.”

Seonghwa’s voice drew Jongho out of his pondering, the young pirate twisting to see the elder standing at his right. Seonghwa’s blonde hair was overgrown, most of it not quite long enough to tuck behind his ears and falling in his eyes when he moved. It had been months since any of them had cut their hair, so to see Seonghwa’s hair messily inconveniencing him was no surprise.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve heard someone speak Essada,” Jongho mumbled.

“It is unusual,” Seonghwa hummed. “The first person I ever heard speak Essada was you, and there haven’t been many others after that.”

“It’s strange. He didn’t speak with an accent,” Jongho remarked. “He spoke Essada like a native. Like – like he was _Essan_.”

Seonghwa shrugged. “And maybe he was.”

“That’s really not possible,” Jongho frowned. “He can’t be Essan.”

The first mate arched a fine brow, his stare weighted, heavy. “ _You_ are Essan, are you not? He very well might be.”

Jongho chewed on his lower lip, remembering the ghost of cold steel. “You don’t understand. There’s only one way out of Essa, and hardly anyone made it out alive.”

Seonghwa went quiet, seeming to pore over Jongho’s words. The boy left him there, padding across the deck to climb the ratlines and haul himself into the crow’s nest. Belatedly he realized that he didn’t have a spyglass with him, and scowled at the expanse of water below that he couldn’t pretend to be watching.

And so instead of pretending to be doing anything that he truly didn’t have the mindset to do at the time, Jongho sat on the wooden boards that floored the crow’s nest and drew his knees up to his chest.

The _Promise_ was far from Essa, and it was unlikely that the ship would sail into the waters near Essa again.

“Knock knock.”

Yunho’s voice was quiet but welcome, disrupting the silence of the crow’s nest as he settled beside Jongho, spyglass in hand. “You know, the crow’s nest is a strange place to hide.”

“I’m not hiding,” Jongho grumbled.

Yunho turned the spyglass in his fingers. “I know,” he replied at last. “You’re just… avoiding human interaction.”

“If that’s my intention I’m obviously failing.” Jongho rested his forehead on his knees, curling in on himself. Yunho’s hand rested on his shoulderblade, not moving, just resting. Because it was Yunho, the hand didn’t feel heavy and Jongho didn’t squirm to shrug it off.

For a long moment, Yunho didn’t move or say anything in response. Then he sighed and moved closer to Jongho, putting his arm around his shoulders. “Yeosang’s going to stab me for this.”

“Why?” It came out muffled against Jongho’s knees, which made Yunho laugh.

“He told me to come get you out of the crow’s nest, but here we are.”

Jongho’s brows furrowed as he lifted his head. “Why does he want you to get me out of the crow’s nest?”

Yunho shrugged. “Maybe it’s because you’re sick?”

Jongho exhaled. _It’s because he thinks I’m pregnant,_ he muttered to himself, but he dared not utter those words out loud. Not when there was still a chance that he wasn’t pregnant, that he was ill and Yeosang was wrong.

Although… he’d stopping hoping that Yeosang and Seonghwa were wrong some time ago, and had instead begun to dread the pregnancy beginning to show.

“...maybe we should go back down before he comes up and drags us down by the ear,” Jongho suggested.

Beaming, Yunho withdrew his arm. “You go ahead. I’ll stay up here and keep an eye out.”

“The sea is clear,” Jongho grumbled.

“I know,” Yunho grinned.

Jongho shook his head and stepped out of the crow’s nest, scrambling down the ratlines almost as quickly as he had ascended them. The further down he went, the clearer and clearer the expression of disapproval Yeosang wore grew; the saw-bones’ arms were folded over his chest and he looked like he would start ranting the moment Jongho’s feet were on the deck.

Surprisingly, however, he saved the scolding, merely crooking a finger for Jongho to follow him and leading the way below. The youngest pirate inhaled and went after him, not daring to invoke Yeosang’s wrath.

As Jongho had feared, Yeosang led the way to the infirmary and pointed at one of the tables. “Sit down, shirt off,” the saw-bones ordered shortly. “Stay out of the crows-nest.”

Undoing the laces of his shirt and pulling it over his head, Jongho sighed but dared not retort. Instead, he folded up the shirt and rested it on the cot, sitting down beside it while Yeosang stared at him.

Yeosang peered at him for a long time, his stare intense enough that Jongho half-worried he would burst into flames from the sheer force of the saw-bones’ eyes, but eventually he drew back and turned away from Jongho with his lips pressed in a thin line. “You may put your shirt back on now.”

Jongho pulled the white garment over his head and stood up to tug it into place. He pulled on the laces, drawing them shut so he could tie the front of the shirt closed and hopefully escape the infirmary.

Yeosang stood at his counter, hands resting on the surface, and let out a long, frustrated sigh. Jongho’s hands stilled, the youngest pirate recognizing that sigh as a bad sign. His gut twisted, and he bit the inside of his lip hard enough for the metallic taste of blood to fill his mouth as he finished lacing his shirt.

“Go get Seonghwa.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heh, crappy writing, what's new. anyw, i'm stuck at my mom's so here's this shit :'D


	9. [009] Discussions

Jongho’s teeth were still digging into his lip when he left the infirmary, and as he walked onto the _Promise_ ’s deck, Jongho could still taste the blood in his mouth. His lip was also still stinging, but he paid it no mind – the blood and the sting weren’t all that had remained. The knots in his gut also lingered, making it hard for him to act as though nothing was wrong when he approached Seonghwa.

The last thing he wanted was for Hongjoong and Yunho to pick up on that something was off and start asking questions that he wouldn’t have the answers to. Questions that he might not _want_ the answers to, considering Yeosang’s behavior in the infirmary.

The first mate noticed Jongho’s presence and tilted his head in silent question, waiting for him to say or do something. Jongho inhaled and let the breath back out slowly, trying to ease his nerves.

_All Yeosang said was to get Seonghwa_ , he told himself. It was a sad attempt at reassuring himself and attempting to calm down, and as such it fell flat; so he sucked in and let out another breath and stated, “Yeosang told me to come get you.”

At that, Seonghwa’s face smoothed out and he made a soft _ah_ of understanding and motioned for Jongho to lead on. With apprehension still mounting, the youngest of the crew turned on his heel and lead the way back to the infirmary, Seonghwa at his heels the entire time. And though Hongjoong’s eyes followed them as they made their way back below, the captain said nothing.

Yeosang was waiting for them, the way his arms were folded over his chest and the expression of distaste he wore making Jongho swallow hard. When Seonghwa closed the door behind them, it seemed louder than it actually was and the young pirate flinched.

“Jongho, take your shirt back off,” Yeosang ordered, and Jongho reached back to the laces with a grimace and a pounding heart.

Seonghwa’s brows were furrowed. “Is he—”

“I think so.”

“That’s…”

“I know.”

While they were having their short and seeming-incomplete conversation, Jongho pulled his shirt over his head and folded it neatly, holding it against his stomach as Yeosang and Seonghwa stared at each other for a few tense, silent moments.

Seonghwa exhaled a quiet curse, and the silence was broken. Yeosang turned to Jongho and extended a hand for his shirt, which the youngest pirate reluctantly handed over. In order to resist the urge to shield himself from Seonghwa and Yeosang’s weighing eyes, Jongho linked his hands behind his back and bit the inside of his lip, tasting fresh blood.

As though he could tell, Seonghwa’s head snapped up and he scolded, “Stop doing that, Jongho.”

The young pirate released his lip, instead training his gaze on the floor until Yeosang held the shirt back out. He pulled it back on in haste and laced the front quickly, tying the knot with shaky hands while Seonghwa and Yeosang shared a glance.

“It does seem like there’s something… starting to show,” Seonghwa remarked. “But it’s still a little early on to be certain, and we could be seeing things.”

Yeosang hummed his agreement. “I certainly wouldn’t tell Hongjoong or Yunho as of yet. But I would advise lightening his work load, just in case. It might be early on and it might be nothing, but I wouldn’t want to take the risk of him hurting himself or the child.”

Jongho wanted to point out that he was standing right there and that they were talking about him as though he wasn’t present, but at the same time wished he could melt into the boards of the infirmary floor and evade the conversation entirely. Unfortunately, the latter was impossible.

“No, we shouldn’t tell the others, not until we’re certain,” agreed Seonghwa. “Although we may have to tell Hongjoong in order to convince him to lighten Jongho’s workload—”

“—which isn’t necessary, I—”

“Hush,” snapped Yeosang, cutting Jongho off, “you hush before I confine you to your quarters.”

Jongho hushed.

“...although confining you to your quarters would probably give me some peace of mind, since you’d be out of the way and unable to do anything strenuous,” Yeosang murmured thoughtfully.

“Yeosang, we can’t confine him to his quarters,” chided the first mate. “Hongjoong and Yunho will probably think he has a contagious illness—”

“That may be what we need them to think until we know if Jongho is pregnant or not,” Yeosang argued. “It could work in our favor—”

“Yeosang, we aren’t confining him to his quarters.”

“It was just an option,” the saw-bones huffed.

“Yes, but it’s not our only option,” Seonghwa pointed out. “I’m sure I can convince Hongjoong to put him on lightened duty, and when that happens, Yunho will make sure Jongho won’t do anything too straining.”

Yeosang frowned. “That is true.”

Jongho stopped paying attention to their conversation, instead lurching to the bucket that Yeosang had started absently leaving on the counter. Heaving into it, he dimly registered that they had stopped talking while he emptied his stomach. When he was done, Seonghwa offered him a pitcher of water. Jongho rinsed out his mouth, letting out a low groan after spitting the soiled water into the bucket on the counter – and then vomited a second time. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short chapter because i actually didn't know where i was going with this, since i started it several days ago but with all the bad weather and everything here in oklahoma, which is... where i live, i haven't been able to work on it D: and so please forgive me for taking so long and writing subpar... everything... yikes.
> 
> also,,, the teaser picture which i finally saw... don't touch me 
> 
> also also, watching the promise mv a friend of mine pointed out that it looks like something's wrong with jongho? like he's moving slower/potentially limping etc? my baby---


	10. [010] Midnight Rising

Lightened duty was something Jongho abhorred.

For as little as Yeosang allowed him to do, he might as well have been confined to his quarters for the past three days; not that this was a thought he would voice, for fear that the saw-bones would take this as the go-ahead to imprison Jongho belowdecks. Even if the youngest member of the crew was itching to be petulant, he valued being able to at least stand on the deck, able to absorb the sunlight and feel the wind blowing through his hair.

Because he was restricted from doing much of anything else, Jongho stood at the helm with the captain. Yunho was below doing heavy lifting for Yeosang and Seonghwa had spent all day holed up in the crow’s nest with a spyglass and curt orders to leave him be. Sometimes, Seonghwa just needed to be alone and as close to the sky as possible.

“How are you, Jongho?” Jongho looked at the captain, whose eyes were fixed on him, searching his face for a sign that something was off or wrong. Jongho hated when Hongjoong looked at him like that, because he always felt like the captain could see everything he was trying to hide.

“...I’m fine.”

He was slow to answer, and that was probably one of the things that caused Hongjoong’s brow to quirk and a look of firm irritation to settle across the captain’s usually-lax features. Hongjoong had always been able to tell when he was stalling, when he was lying; or when he was only telling partial truths.

“Are you.” It wasn’t a question.

With Hongjoong, it never was.

Jongho’s mouth was dry, torn between telling the captain and keeping silent until the truth absolutely _had_ to come out. It was a difficult decision to make; he _knew_ Hongjoong, he trusted him with his life. He was, however, in a difficult situation – and nothing was yet certain. Seonghwa and Yeosang themselves said it was too early to tell. Therefore, it was also too early to tell others.

“Yesosang and Seonghwa tell me that you shouldn’t even lift a crate or climb to the crows’ nest, but you say you are _fine_ ,” Hongjoong continued. “I have my doubts about how fine you are.”

Jongho opened his mouth, closed it, and avoided the captain’s gaze. “I’m just nauseous.” _I hope._

“For how long now have you been _just nauseous_ , Jongho?”

_Thirteen days_ , his brain treacherously informed him, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak.

Hongjoong sighed, some of the tension leaving his posture. “I know that you, Yeosang, and Seonghwa are determined to keep whatever this is as a secret, but you aren’t as sly as any of you think. It’s very difficult to reign Yunho in when he wants to know something, and as for myself, I find all of this worrying.”

Jongho wrapped his arms around himself and stared at the boards of the deck, counting lines that he could see in the wood while he and the captain stood in silence. All of the tension that had left Hongjoong’s frame seemed to have filled the air, building up around the two of them until Hongjoong exhaled again.

“I’m not angry,” the captain stated. “I don’t know that any of us honestly could be angry at you. But I’m worried, and so is Yunho.”

The silence returned after that, but the tension surrounding captain and youngest crew member had been somewhat relieved. By the time that Yunho returned to the deck, followed by an irritated-looking Yeosang, Jongho was no longer staring at the deck and Hongjoong was whistling cheerful tunes again. 

 

* * *

 

Jongho rolled out of his cot and hit the floor with a solid thump, but paid the aching of his knee no mind as he pulled the pail on the floor close enough that he could heave into it, his throat burning and his stomach roiling in protest.

_Fifteen days_ , he thought despairingly, and shakily pushed himself up off of the floor. Without bothering to change out of the clothes he slept in, he scooped the pail off of the floor and took it to empty it out and rinse out his mouth.

Once that unpleasant task taken care of, Jongho made his way up to the deck, bare feet padding softly against the ship’s wooden flooring. The entire ship was quiet and still, and his brows furrowed in confusion.

Cold night air washed over him when he stepped onto the deck, and the young pirate realized why the ship was so still; it was late into the night, probably already having edged into the early hours of morning but still not close enough to the dawn for the sky to begin lightening. As he made his way to the forecastle and ascended the stairs so he could stare out ahead of the _Promise_ , Jongho wondered what had woken him.

Footsteps ascended after him and a jacket was settled around his shoulders. Large and smelling of a sweet and sharp mixture of spices, it could only be Yunho’s.

“Shouldn’t you be asleep? What are you doing up here in your nightwear?”

Jongho looked over the rail at the water that split before the _Promise_ ’s mighty bow and shrugged. “I woke up and everything was quiet.”

Yunho tapped his fingers against the rail. “Everyone else is sleeping – and you should be, too, Jongho.”

Jongho chewed on his lower lip. The only reasonable explanation was that the need to vomit had woken him, but he wasn’t going to say that to Yunho and perpetuate his worries. “...maybe I just needed some fresh air.”

Yunho snorted, a snort of amusement. “Now that you’ve gotten your fresh air, you should go back to sleep. Preferably before Seonghwa or Yeosang wake up and have my head.”

Jongho pulled Yunho’s jacket tighter around himself. “Why would they do that?”

“For the same reason you’re snuggling my jacket: it’s cold.”

“I’m not snuggling it,” Jongho protested, but made no move to relinquish the article of clothing. Yunho laughed at him, the sound carrying over the sound of the ship moving through the water. “Better hope you didn’t wake Yeosang.”

“Hopefully he’s sleeping like the dead, or I’ll _be_ dead,” Yunho joked. Jongho laughed, his lips spreading in a wide grin that showed teeth, and he pulled off Yunho’s jacket and held it out to him.

“I’m going back to sleep,” he explained, when Yunho refused to take the jacket. That reassurance served to make the older pirate reclaim his jacket and slide it back on.

“Goodnight, Jongho.”

“Night, Yunho.”

Leaving the deck, the cold night air and the clarity of company behind as he went back below, Jongho realized how tired he actually was. He kept his focus on keeping his eyes open, walking as quietly as possible and making it to his quarters. Otherwise, he might have ran into a wall or walked into the wrong room – neither of which were things he really wanted to do.

Falling into his cot and worming his way beneath the pile of blankets haphazardly heaped atop it, Jongho curled up and dozed off quickly, sinking into a sleep that was dreamless save for the occasional sound of dark laughter and a brush of cold metal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> haha... hahaha... hahahaha.... yes i had planned to update sooner and yes this is another bad chapter but D:
> 
> also can you believe it, we've reached ten chapters, wow, maybe now i'll write something of quality


	11. [011] Nightmare

“No! No! _No_!”

Jongho woke screaming, body covered in a thin layer of sweat and his heart hammering. He couldn’t tell where he was and the blankets tangled around his legs felt like nets, binding him to his cot. He thrashed to free himself until he fell out of the cot and struck the floor, a sharp cry of pain escaping when he landed on his already-scraped knees. But he didn’t stay on the floor long.

He needed to get up, to get _out_.

Jongho scrambled to his feet and tripped over the blankets still wrapped at his ankles. With a shout of frustration he kicked his way free and scrambled up again, bolting for the door that swung open. Vision swimming, he pushed past the man in the doorway whose face he couldn’t make out and ran a familiar path, weaving through halls and up stairs until he burst onto the deck.

The deck.

He was on a ship.

“— _Jongho_!”

Strong arms wrapped around his waist and lifted him up, pulling him back. In an attempt to free himself, he thrashed and kicked, squirming as much as he could against the strong hold.

“ _Let go of me_!” he screamed, clawing at the arms around him. “ _Let me go! Get off of me! Put me down!_ ”

“Jongho! Calm down!”

One of Jongho’s feet finally connected with the leg of the man holding him, and he could feel the leg buckle. Unfortunately, the man recovered quickly and held him tighter, preventing his escape and letting him struggle and wear himself out.

“What’s going on?!”

“ _Let me go_!”

“He won’t stop screaming in Essada!”

Jongho thrashed harder, feet finding purchase against the legs of his captor as he strained to free himself. The man cursed against his ear and Jongho slammed his head back, trying to hit him and narrowly missing.

“Take him to his quarters,” someone ordered, and they were moving. Jongho’s vision was still blurry but he could make out the figures of two other people standing on the deck, watching them as they receded.

Jongho kept fighting, but the tight hold never relinquished and despair made a sob well up in his throat. “ _Please… please let me go_.”

A door in front of them was pulled, or pushed, open and Jongho was carted inside and rested on a cot. He immediately tried to get up and bolt for the exit again, but hands pushed him back down and someone held him down.

All at once there were more people, more blurry faces around him and he screamed again, but this time for help.

“Shhhh, Jongho, shhh.” The hands holding him left and someone pulled him into a warm embrace, a soothing hand running through his hair. “Calm down, you’re safe. You’re on the _Promise_ , with Seonghwa and Yunho and Hongjoong and Yeosang.”

The _Promise_ …

He took a deep, shuddering breath, inhaling the scent of salty sea air and apples.

“That’s it. Just breathe, baby. I know you’re scared.”

Jongho shivered, tears rolling down his cheeks as he fought to get out of the fog of his hellish nightmare. He buried his face in the shirt of the man holding him, fighting back sobs that wracked his entire frame.

“It’s okay. It’s going to be okay. You’re _safe_ , Jongho.” The hand didn’t stop running through his hair, another rubbing circles into his back.

“Seonghwa…?”

“Yes,” the first mate confirmed, holding him tighter. “Are you with us again?”

“I—yes.” The haze was thinning, diminishing to nothing. “I—where’s Yunho?”

“I sent the others out,” Seonghwa murmured.

“I tried to hurt him,” the young pirate uttered numbly. “I—I need to—”

“You need to rest, Jongho—”

“— _no_ ,” he insisted, the word coming out sharply. “I mean. No, please. I—I don’t think I could bear to go through that again.”

“What happened? It’s been so long since you’ve been like this,” Seonghwa pointed out, his hand resuming its gentle motion through his hair.

“Another nightmare,” Jongho whispered into the first mate’s shirt.

“I’d gathered that much. Do you want to tell me what it was about?” Seonghwa pressed, his voice soft and his hand smoothing through Jongho’s hair and cupping at the back of his head.

“I—” Jongho took a deep breath. “I was back in Essa...”

“And?” Seonghwa prompted.

“...and I felt her die. I could feel my baby, and I _felt her die_.” The young pirate could feel the tears coming down again and reached up to rub them away, but Seonghwa caught his hand and pulled him flush against his chest.

“That won’t happen,” the first mate murmured. “None of us will let that happen.”

 

* * *

 

When Jongho woke for the second time, he was still curled into Seonghwa’s chest, and there was another presence in the room. At some point, the first mate had laid back so they were laying down, and Jongho felt quite embarrassed that he’d fallen asleep on Seonghwa; but he pushed that down in favor of sitting up and looking around to find Yeosang leaning against the wall, observing them.

“Good morning,” he said drily. Behind Jongho, there was a rustle as Seonghwa also sat up, scooting toward the head of the cot so he wasn’t too close to the youngest member of the crew. “Are you feeling better now?”

Jongho nodded.

Yeosang sighed. “Good. Seonghwa told me about your dream.”

That wasn’t unexpected.

The saw-bones shared a look with the first mate, and cleared his throat. “Anyway, Jongho, I think it’s time to tell them.”

Jongho had been afraid that was what he was going to say. He plucked at a string hanging from the hem of his shirt and looked at the ground, trying to swallow around the lump in his throat. He was scared, even though he knew there was no reason for him to be.

It was Hongjoong and Yunho, after all. They would never do anything to hurt him.

“...I’m scared,” he whispered.

“You have nothing to be afraid of,” Yeosang responded. “If it will make you feel better, you can hold my hand.”

There was no mockery, no sarcasm, no condescending remark to follow those words; Jongho looked up to search Yeosang’s expression, and found that the saw-bones was being genuine. He paused, but then held out his hand for Yeosang’s.

“Okay.”

Seonghwa’s expression was full of concern. “Jongho, if you want to wait—”

Jongho cut him off with a shake of the head, gripping Yeosang’s hand firmly. “No. No, we can do this.” _I can do this_ , he promised himself firmly. Pushing it off would only make it harder for him later; he might as well get it over with, the sooner the better.

 

* * *

 

On second thought, maybe Jongho couldn’t do this. He had thought he was scared and nervous when he was in his quarters with Yeosang and Seonghwa, but that couldn’t compare to how he felt now that Yunho and Hongjoong were also present.

The young pirate adjusted his grip on Yeosang and Seonghwa’s hands, his gut tying itself in knots under Hongjoong’s curious gaze.

The silence eventually became too much for Yunho to bear, and he was the first of the five to speak up. “Is Jongho okay? I’m not asking about the nightmare. I mean… everything else.”

Seonghwa gave Jongho’s hand a gentle squeeze. “He’s fine, Yunho.”

“But… all the visits to the infirmary, and putting him on lightened duty, and—”

“He’s not injured or sick,” Yeosang interrupted. “It’s... something else. Jongho?”

Jongho’s throat worked, and he swallowed drily. “I—I’m,” he cleared his throat and raised his voice so that he could actually be heard, “I’m pregnant.”

Hongjoong looked startled, like the time Seonghwa had slapped him in the face with an uncooked, uncleaned fish.

Yunho laughed nervously. “You… what?”

Ashamed, Jongho shrank into himself. “I’m pregnant,” he repeated softly, eyes downcast.

“Who…” Hongjoong cleared his throat, shook his head and blinked several times. “Who is the father, Jongho?”

Face aflame, Jongho focused on the floor. “All I know is that his name is Mingi.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was both the hardest chapter to write and in my honest opinion the worst chapter so far. i'm sorry it took so long, but i've been dreading this. this chapter has been giving me so much grief.


	12. Hello, this is not a new chapter.

Wow. It's been a while, hasn't it? 

(I vanished for almost two months, yes I am a terrible person.) 

So I suppose I owe an apology, and an explanation. I'd intended to get back to working on  _Gleaming Treasure_ after some family things were taken care of, but I just haven't had the time, the inspiration, energy or the state of mind to write this story or even touch this account. 

I don't know when I'm going to get back to writing _Gleaming Treasure_. Right now my 'serious writing energy' is being directed into the book I'm working on, and _Gleaming Treasure_ isn't something like a drabble, I can't write it without much thought. It takes a lot out of me to write this story and lately my self-care has been... lacking as is. However, I'm trying to get better again, and will definitely make an attempt to get back to _Gleaming Treasure_ at least once a month. 

I can't honestly say I'll have a lot of time to work on it because I'm about to repeat my senior year of high school (it was a personal decision, I did not flunk, nor was I forced to repeat my grade) and I don't know how that's going to go because I've never been to public high school. Between school, karate, family, art and my book, and of course the drabble project I'll be working on this month, I don't know what I'll be able to write for and chances are I won't be updating _Gleaming Treasure_ in August. 

To recap, I'm alive, _Gleaming Treasure_ won't be updated often at all, I'm sorry for disappearing. This note is already too long so I'll just awkwardly bye here. 


	13. [012] Not Quite Friends

The confession of Jongho’s pregnancy had certainly caused a change. Yunho hovered around him almost incessantly, leaving his side only when the older crewmember had something pressing to attend to or Jongho retired for the night. As soon as Jongho stepped onto the deck every morning, Yunho was always there at his side, sticking to him like glue until Jongho chose to sleep.

Jongho had waited for Hongjoong to tell Yunho off for being so overbearing, but this behavior wasn’t discouraged. As a result, Yunho’s hovering persisted, much to Jongho’s dismay.

Resting his elbows on the rail, the young pirate stared out across the waves. The _Promise_ was nearing land; Seonghwa had seen it through his spyglass, but it was still out of sight for those trying to see it with the naked eye. The horizon was empty of all but water and sky.

Joining him at the rail, Yunho bumped him with his elbow. “Why so somber?”

Jongho looked down at the frothy white water that was created by the ship cutting through the waves and exhaled a heavy sigh. “I’m not _somber_ , I’m just… thinking.”

“About… it?” Yunho made a vague gesture at Jongho’s abdomen. He was always awkward when it came to the topic of the baby, as though it was impossible for him to wrap his head around the idea that Jongho was going to have a child.

(Which… was most likely the case, considering how he viewed Jongho as a child himself, despite the younger pirate having eighteen years.)

“ _Her_ ,” Jongho corrected sternly. “She’s a girl. I’m sure of it.”

Confused, Yunho frowned, his brows furrowing and head tilting to the side in a manner that reminded Jongho of confused pups he’d seen in the possession of noblemen. “How can you be so sure? I mean… I can’t even tell she’s _there_.”

Thoughtful, Jongho chewed on his lower lip. It was a good question, but not one he could entirely answer. “I don’t know how to explain it, Yunho. I just _know_.”

“You would know more than any of us would, I guess,” shrugged Yunho, ruffling Jongho’s hair in quiet, but not fully understanding, acceptance. “What are you going to name her?”

Jongho hadn’t given names much thought, and so he shook his head as he straightened and twisted away from the rail. “I haven’t been thinking of names,” he murmured. “Not yet.”

Names were something he could worry about later.

 

* * *

 

They weren’t docked for a supply run, or even for simple recreation. Hongjoong and Seonghwa had an informant who kept them up to date on the movements of their rivals, and the _Promise_ docked at the ramshackle port city of Tbti every so often so that the captain and the first mate could get the information they needed. This meant that Yunho, Yeosang and Jongho were all restricted to the ship until they returned - this was not a time for them to be wandering about.

Yunho sat on the ship’s rail, gazing at the people milling about while he sliced and ate an apple with one of the many knives he carried on his person. Peoplewatching was one of his favored hobbies whenever they were docked at Tbti, as there was such a variety of people and things to observe. Occasionally Yunho would snort or chuckle at something he saw, and once he grinned toothily and waved at someone on the docks. Perhaps someone he had encountered before elsewhere, or had seen before at Tbti. It could have even been a stranger. There was no telling with Yunho.

Yeosang sat on the deck with a logbook and quill pen in hand, jotting down details about something – Jongho’s pregnancy, most likely. His posture was perfect, his back straight and his legs folded up before him with the logbook resting on his knee. The inkwell rested on the deck beside him, settled at the precise position Yeosang always had it. He no longer had to look to dip into the ink, doing it from muscle memory. His precise, particular nature allowed for that.

Jongho himself was stretched out on the deck not far from the saw-bones, soaking up the sun’s rays and enjoying the sensation of lazing in the sunlight. The warmth of the sun seemed to seep into his very muscles and relax his entire being, leaving a puddle of content pirate on the wooden boards of the deck.

“Ah, the _Promise_!” someone called out to them, voice full of cheer.

The skritch of Yeosang’s quill halted; Jongho opened his eyes and squinted at how bright it was, but sat up to seek the person who had shouted the greeting to their crew. Yunho himself had twisted around and dropped onto the deck, standing with his apple trapped between his teeth and hand on one of his pistols. Something of a laughable sight, if one missed the cold steel of his gaze.

The individual was not hard to find. A man with red-streaked hair precariously clinging to the ratlines of a ship with one hand and waving at the _Promise_ with the other was not a sight that could be easily overlooked, even in a place such as Tbti. It confused Jongho; he did not recognize him, nor the ship he sailed upon - the _Twilight_ , as her name read proudly. Yet he greeted them and waved wildly as though they knew one another…

Another man on the deck of the _Twilight_ scowled up at the waving man and shouted, “Both hands on the ratlines, San!”

“You are not my mother, Wooyoung!”

Wooyoung.

That was more familiar.

Apparently it was familiar to Yeosang as well, for he set aside his logbook and quill and rose quickly, Jongho confusedly following suit. “You are the ones we collided with!” the saw-bones announced in recognition.

“Indeed!” beamed San, swinging further out on the ratlines so that he could be closer to the _Promise_. “Is yours only a crew of three as well?”

As though on cue, Hongjoong and Seonghwa whistled up at Yunho to lower the gangplank and he scrambled to obey - with more force than was necessary, due to how overzealous he was.

Familiar with Yunho’s overeager, nervous antics when faced with new people that they weren’t ripping to shreds, Yeosang heaved a long-suffering sigh. “Our captain and first mate are just now returning,” he replied. “Our crew is five.”

“San, are you still hanging off the ratlines?”

The deep voice accompanied a man emerging from below, a cocked hat perched on his head. In the daylight, Jongho could make out his features - tussled brown hair, thick lips, almost sleepy eyes and two rings in his right ear. Mouth suddenly dry, Jongho wondered if he could dart below and hide until the _Promise_ left Tbti without being noticed or questioned.

Yunho chose that moment to saunter to the young pirate and loop an arm around his shoulders, following Jongho’s gaze to the man with the cocked hat. “Friend of yours, Jongho?” he asked, smile wide.

Friend?

No, he wasn’t quite a _friend_.

Jongho shook his head, his hand absently pressing against his stomach as his eyes remained trained on the man who wore the cocked hat. “He’s not exactly a friend…”

“Oh? But you do know him?”

Nervous, Jongho wet his lips. “You could say that, I suppose.”

As though he could feel the weight of Jongho’s stare, the man turned at that exact moment and met his eyes.

“Jongho!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> surprise surprise i wrote something yaaaay  
> thank you so much for all the kind comments on the last chapter <3 ily all and it's really nice to have encouraging things like that in my inbox since i feel guilty about not updating more often


	14. [013] Mingi

Jongho’s throat was dry, swallowing hard as his lips twitched and pulled into a smile that was equal parts awkward and nervous. He greeted the man who had called out to him with the tiniest of waves, feeling as though he would start shrinking inward at any moment as a result of Yeosang’s piercing gaze. Even though the saw-bones was behind him, Jongho could feel his eyes boring into him, undoubtedly already piecing things together.

Yeosang had always been brilliant.

Unsure of what to say, Jongho remained silent and stared at the man who stood on the _Twilight_ ’s deck while his stomach twisted in nervous knots. Encountering him again was something Jongho hadn’t expected… and so soon, at that.

Fate, it seemed, was playing particularly cruel games with the young pirate.

“You and Jongho are acquainted?”

The inquiry was Seonghwa’s, straightforward and as sharp as Yeosang’s gaze - which had shifted off of Jongho, most likely to the _Twilight_ 's captain. A lump formed in Jongho’s throat when the man tore his gaze away from the young pirate and looked at the _Promise_ ’s first mate instead, seeming a bit surprised at the abrupt question.

His cheeks tinted red as he reached up to adjust his hat. “I suppose you could say that.”

_“Veda rehin atalga kilor, du?”_

It was Jongho’s face that flooded with color upon hearing the words of San, in part from embarrassment and in part from rage - the man who still hung from the ratlines with a mischievous grin had described him as a _conquest_.

Jongho was not a conquest.

_“Atalga, San? Ji’atalga sha rohin,”_ the Twilight’s captain spluttered.

“Some of us can’t speak Essada,” grumbled Yunho. Jongho ignored his expectant stare in favor of prolonging the lives of the _Twilight_ ’s crew. There were some things Yunho just didn’t need to hear.

He was bad enough as it was - gods forbid he realize someone had labeled his precious Jongho as a sexual conquest.

“San was being a nuisance; you should ignore him,” Wooyoung advised. “He has no manners. _Verdal_ , Jongho.”

The apology was accepted with a tiny nod.

Hongjoong cleared his throat, dispelling some of the tension that lurked in the air. “Manners are… not the most common, among pirates; we have seen worse, have no worry of that.”

(Hongjoong, too, might have exploded, had he known San’s words.)

“Speaking of manners,” Seonghwa muttered, “we have forgotten introductions.”

Once again, Jongho marveled that the _Promise_ would truly be lost without Seonghwa.

“You’re correct,” Hongjoong realized. “I’m Hongjoong, the captain of the _Promise_. My first mate, Seonghwa. The saw-bones, Yeosang. Our quartermaster, Yunho. And you already know Jongho.”

“These are my first mates, Wooyoung and San,” the _Twilight_ ’s captain beamed. “And I’m Mingi - the captain of the _Twilight_.”

 

* * *

 

Jongho wasn’t entirely certain how he’d ended up in his current situation.

He was sandwiched between Seonghwa and Yeosang, the eight pirates seated around a table in a tavern. Mingi had apparently missed the icy atmosphere after his introduction and had proposed getting a friendly drink together - and Hongjoong had accepted. Unable to sit beside Jongho, Yunho had taken the seat across from Mingi, and hadn’t looked away from the _Twilight_ ’s captain once. Jongho felt mildly uncomfortable, foreseeing a brawl - he knew how Yunho was, and he was worse when he drank.

While Hongjoong and Mingi discussed sailing and traded stories of seafaring, Jongho pushed Seonghwa’s mug around on the table. He himself wasn’t drinking, but the first mate was. Or he had been, before he got roped into a discussion with Wooyoung. Now he was distracted, and so Jongho distracted himself by moving his half-full tankard around with one finger.

Yunho was glaring at Mingi like he thought he could kill him with his gaze alone, tension thick in the air around the large pirate. Jongho contemplated excusing himself in order to get away from it, but knew that one of the _Promise_ ’s crewmembers would follow him and he would end up having to explain himself. So instead, he remained in his seat and pushed the tankard around with one hand, the other resting on his thigh under the table.

When the conversation between Mingi and Hongjoong eventually died down, Yunho seemed to have had enough. He launched himself over the table and took the _Twilight_ ’s captain to the floor, knocking his chair over and nearly taking the table out with him. Jongho winced when the table being shaken resulted in Yeosang’s drink tipping over and spilling on the saw-bones.

Expression sour, Yeosang momentarily looked like he was considering diving into the wrestling match on the floor. Apparently he thought better of it, however, for he merely sat his emptied tankard upright and offered a thin-lipped smile to Wooyoung and San.

“Not going to help your captain?” Seonghwa inquired.

Wooyoung shrugged, uncaring evident in his lax posture. “Can’t say he needs our help. He could take you on, too.”

Seonghwa’s eyes glinted. “Would you care to make a bet on that?”

Jongho would be lying if he said he wasn’t tempted to intervene - Yunho and Seonghwa were both strong fighters. However, he knew better than to do so, and remained quiet in his seat beside Yeosang, who had snagged Seonghwa’s drink to replace his own.

“Certainly,” San grinned. “Twenty chips of Essada gold says Mingi can whip you both.”

“Acceptable terms,” Seonghwa murmured, and turned to join the fight that had moved from rolling around on the floor to actually battling on their feet. Someone (Yunho) had crashed through a table, and someone else (Mingi) had already knocked another over. Jongho had no desire to know how much the damages would cost to repair, once the brawl was over.

Despite his disapproval of the brawl in general, the young pirate couldn’t help but look on as Mingi managed to fend off Yunho and Seonghwa. To say he did so with ease would be a lie; but while it did seem to be a strain, Mingi was still doing it, and that left Jongho amazed. He’d barely seen anyone fend off Yunho alone, in his years aboard the _Promise_.

His stomach began churning, however, and so he left the table and slipped outside to heave in the alley beside the tavern. He could hear the sounds of things breaking and crashing within the building and shivered as he wiped his mouth.

Yunho and a tavern always ended with destruction, regardless of the circumstances. He’d always find a reason to fight someone and destroy something.

Yeosang’s voice was full of mirth when he spoke up from behind him. “You were swooning.”

“I did not _swoon_ ,” Jongho snapped, straightening to glare at the older pirate.

Yeosang’s response was a mere smile before he changed the subject. “Let’s go back to the _Promise_ , Jongho. You should rest.”

“It feels as though all I do is rest,” the young pirate grumbled, but he allowed the saw-bones to lead him away from the tavern and back in the direction of the docks. Arguing with Yeosang had always been pointless, anyway.

“So, that is Mingi.”

Jongho tucked his arms tight around his abdomen and stared straight ahead, not looking at the man who walked beside him. “Yes.”

“And he is the father?”

“Yes,” Jongho said finally. “He is.”

Mingi was, after all, the only man who could be.

Yeosang hummed. “Will you tell him?”

“Of course not,” Jongho murmured. “He doesn’t need to know.”

There was a whisper in the back of his mind that his daughter was Mingi’s child too, but Jongho viciously stomped that down. It wasn’t welcome.

The saw-bones looked as though he wanted to say something, but changed his mind and instead asked, “Did you know he was a pirate?”

“No. When we met he looked like a land-dweller. I had no idea he was even a sailor, Yeosang.”

If he _had_ known, Jongho might not be in his current situation.

Yeosang asked no more questions on their walk back to the _Promise_ , and Jongho was thankful for the silence. He didn’t want to talk about Mingi, and he definitely didn’t want to be interrogated about him.

The truth was, Jongho didn’t really know anything about Mingi; it wasn’t as though they’d told one another their life stories. They’d met in a tavern, shared a drink and things had gone from there. Jongho had only known his name, and vice versa - although Mingi had probably been able to gather that Jongho was a sailor, given his attire.

It didn’t change the fact that they were strangers to one another, and they had been strangers after they spent a night together. Jongho couldn’t provide satisfactory answers to questions about his identity, even if he had wanted to.

And he didn’t exactly want to, either.

 

* * *

 

Jongho was seated on the deck with an apple in hand, watching as Yeosang wrote things down in his logbook, when Hongjoong rejoined them aboard the _Promise_. The noticeable lack of Yunho and Seonghwa didn’t particularly surprise Jongho, but he sighed anyway before taking a bite out of his fruit.

“That tavern will be leveled before the night is over,” Hongjoong remarked grimly, and made himself comfortable between Yeosang and Jongho.

Yeosang let out a loud snort. “I’d expect no less, from those two.”

Around his mouthful of apple, Jongho put in, “Yunho himself could do it. Seonghwa joining in will just speed the process.”

“Don’t speak with your mouth full.”

Jongho made sure he swallowed before he quipped out a _yes, father_ that left Hongjoong looking both tired and a little bit amused. Then he took another large bite out of his apple, lips tugging up when the captain let out a long-suffering sigh.

“Whatever am I going to do with you, Jongho?”

Apple tucked in his cheek, puffing it out, Jongho shrugged. “Hmm, I don’t know. Love me forever?”

It was Hongjoong’s turn to snort.

“Alright, then. I have a better idea. You could let me return to my regular duties!” the young pirate chirped, though he already knew he was going to be shot down. They might not have been as bad as Seonghwa and Yunho, but Yeosang and Hongjoong were still overprotective.

As expected, the captain shook his head. “In the future, but not at this point in time.”

If those words made Jongho pout, there was absolutely no proof.

The youngest of the _Promise_ ’s crew finished his apple in relative silence, broken only by the soft rustle of cloth when Hongjoong leaned back to lay on the deck, and the sound of Yeosang writing and occasionally humming to himself. It was peaceful, and Jongho was content to sit there and observe the saw-bones while he ate his fruit.

Once he was done, he chucked the core off of the ship and lay down on the deck with his head resting beside Hongjoong’s ribs, beneath the captain’s arm that was tucked under his head. Lazily, Hongjoong stretched the other arm across himself so that he could pat Jongho’s hair, a quiet acknowledgement of the younger pirate’s presence.

It was nice.

It was nice - but there were storms brewing on the horizon, storms that the crew of the _Promise_ were not prepared for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you would not believe how much hell this chapter gave me   
> this was supposed to be uploaded yesterday as a special, longer chapter but as you can see i missed my mark... but at least it's at least a bit longer than the usual chapters D: 
> 
> also i just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has left kudos, a bookmark, a comment, subscribed, or even just read this trainwreck of a fic, because it really does mean a lot to me ; u ;


	15. [014] Traders

Seonghwa coughing up twenty chips of Essada gold and handing them to San marked the end of the _Promise_ ’s short docking in Tbti. Directly thereafter, the preparations to leave port began, and Jongho stayed below throughout, doing what he was allowed belowdecks to help prepare the ship.

Jongho blamed morning nausea when Yeosang came to ask why he wasn’t on the deck and ignored the knowing set of the saw-bones’ eyebrows when he left. There was nothing he could do or say to keep Yeosang from formulating opinions, but Jongho knew he wouldn’t voice them to others. Not when they were trivial things, and didn’t affect the well-being of the crew.

It wasn’t that he was avoiding speaking to Mingi, or even seeing him again. It wasn’t that at all.

Yeosang could always see through him, though. Even if Jongho was telling himself that he wasn’t trying to avoid the _Twilight_ ’s captain, Yeosang knew otherwise. Jongho could lie to himself, but to never Yeosang. The saw-bones and the first mate were a lot alike in that regard, but Yeosang was far better-versed.

Leaving Tbti, and the _Twilight_ , behind was a relief. The port was small on the horizon when Jongho finally emerged onto the deck, but he didn’t even glance toward the land that was beginning to fade; his attention was focused on the captain. Hongjoong was perched in the crow’s nest, even though it was entirely uncharacteristic of him to be there.

“Why is Hongjoong in the nest?” the young pirate asked Yunho. He was well aware of their captain’s hatred for the crow’s nest, and was confused to see him precariously perched in it with a spyglass in one hand and a line in the other.

Yunho shrugged. “He didn’t explain himself.”

“He _despises_ the crow’s nest,” Jongho frowned.

“I know that just as well as you do,” Yunho snorted. “But he scrambled up in a hurry and didn’t give an explanation, so I’m as confused as you are.”

It made no sense, and Jongho said as much.

“Our captain doesn’t always make sense,” remarked Yeosang drily. He was leaning against the rail, staring out across the horizon. “I believe he’s caught a scent.”

“What scent?”

“Considering his abnormal behavior, I doubt the scent is of gold,” Seonghwa murmured, joining the three at the railing. He tilted his head back to stare thoughtfully up at their captain. “A trader ship left Tbti yesterday night.”

“You think he’s trying to catch the trail of the traders?” Yunho asked, as Jongho’s hands curled into tight fists. The nails dug into his palms, but he barely noticed the sting.

It had been a long time since the _Promise_ had encountered traders - not long enough for the youngest member of the crew. Traders were the scum of the seas, and while the _Promise_ obliterated all she came across, there were always still more, spreading like an infection over the waves.

“Undoubtedly.” Seonghwa was frowning, eyes still trained on Hongjoong. “You know that if Hongjoong catches wind of traders, he’ll do all he can to destroy them.”

Yunho glanced at Jongho, and then back to the first mate. “Won’t we all.”

 

* * *

 

“Traders?” Hongjoong blinked. “Yes, that’s correct. We are sailing after traders.”

The confirmation made Jongho’s stomach knot with the fear that always accompanied the thought of being near traders, but he sliced the hunk of cheese without faltering and divided it between the five plates settled on the deck. The _Promise_ ’s small crew was seated on the deck, enjoying a late meal under the starry sky.

Cheese was a treat, something they didn’t often have - depending on how far out to sea they went, and how long they remained.

Yunho snagged one of his slices and waved it in the air. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

Hongjoong’s lips twitched up in the tiniest amused smile. “You asked before I could tell, Yunho.”

“I mean _before_ you scrambled into the crow’s nest like a deranged monkey, Captain. You didn’t tell us then,” Yunho pointed out, and then stuffed the cheese in his mouth.

Hongjoong sighed patiently. “I didn’t know if we were on the traders’ tail or not, before I entered the crow’s nest _‘like a deranged monkey’_.”

“So we’re on their tail, then?” asked Jongho, sitting cross-legged between Seonghwa and Yunho. “When will we catch up to them?”

“At this rate, I can’t be certain. We may not overtake them until they dock for trade,” the captain explained. “The _Promise_ is swift, but their vessel is, too. She may be able to outrun the _Promise_ until her captain docks her.”

“A port battle would be a dangerous game,” Seonghwa commented, “but it may result in more of the traders’ wares surviving.”

“Or they could be slaughtered,” Jongho uttered quietly, seeing blood soaking over boards instead of the _Promise_ ’s peaceful deck. “It could go either way.”

“This is true,” Hongjoong conceded.

“That being said…” Jongho ran a finger along one of the seams of the deck, not truly feeling or seeing the wood beneath the digit. “Death would be far more merciful than life in slavery.”

The rest of the meal passed in silence, Yeosang gazing at Jongho thoughtfully.

 

* * *

 

As it happened, the _Promise_ did not encounter the traders’ ship until they reached port in Lithura.

They docked beside the vessel, a ship that sent shivers down Jongho’s spine. All trader ships seemed so similar, no matter how different they truly were; there was an air about them that couldn’t be shaken. This ship was no different, and gave off the same aura as the others that Jongho had encountered in his lifetime.

There were people on the deck - traders. Jongho saw no slaves, which was unusual. Even though the vessel was coming into port for trade, traders’ ships usually had slaves on the deck, doing some form of labor. This ship did not, and that was fairly concerning.

When traders didn’t have slaves on their deck, it meant they were usually dealing in one _particular_ brand of slaves. _Those_ traders didn’t pop up in outlying ports often - they went for specific docks, specific areas. To see one in Lithura, if they were trading in what Jongho suspected, was a surprise.

Lithura was not a booming market for pleasure slaves.

But perhaps the traders weren’t stopping for trade. It was possible that this was a necessary stop to replenish stores for their journey across the oceans; such stops were common for all sailors, from military to pirate to slave trader.

“Sex dealers.” Yunho looked like he wanted to spit, but Yeosang was staring at him meaningfully and so he didn’t. “Worst of all traders.”

Jongho’s agreement came in the form of a quiet nod, the young pirate stepping away from the railing. “Where’s Hongjoong?”

“Below,” the elder answered. “You should go get him.”

Jongho frowned but went below without a word, leaving Yunho, Yeosang and Seonghwa on the _Promise_ ’s deck to watch the trader vessel like three hungry wolves.

Below, the _Promise_ was dark, quiet, and still, the only movement that of Jongho, and Seonghwa’s cat that prowled through the darkness in search of rats. Her name was Mirage, and she was like a mirage; there one moment and gone the next, moving quick enough that she could be considered an apparition. The crew loved that cat, and more than once Jongho had let Mirage slip into his cot when she was exiled by Seonghwa and Hongjoong. Nonetheless, she was on the hunt for mice and Jongho was in search of the captain, and so they left each other alone.

He found Hongjoong in the hold, rearranging cargo. Jongho wasn’t entirely certain why their captain had decided to do this on his own, but he didn’t ask; instead, he cleared his throat and called out to him.

“Captain?”

Hongjoong looked up from the crates he was moving and blinked. “Yes, Jongho?”

The youngest member of the _Promise_ ’s crew swallowed. “We’ve docked at Lithura.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hahaha this is so bad ew


	16. [015] Jaehyun

Hongjoong’s decision to leave Jongho on the ship and ‘out of harm’s way’ while the rest of the _Promise_ ’s crew raided the ship hadn’t exactly gone according to plan. Traders had boarded the _Promise_ after the pirates themselves boarded the traders’ ship. And while the captain would have a fit once he realized what had happened while they were occupied, Jongho was grateful for the chance to stretch his muscles in something outside of walking on the deck or below.

He swept under the path of a blade and knocked its wielder’s leg from beneath him, bringing the trader crashing to the deck and driving one of his boot-knives down. The resulting spray of blood coated his white shirt. Disgusted, Jongho grimaced and relieved the trader of all he had of value before rolling away from another attacker.

It was like a war. One side attacked the other’s home territory, and then the other side followed suit.

In this case, it was sailors and ships. Traders and pirates.

The new opponent thought he was smart, circling Jongho and trying to fake him out with pretensive jabs and foot movements that were likely intended to fool Jongho into thinking he was attacking. Jongho had seen the likes of it many times before, and Yunho would have beaten the fire out of him if he let it fool him. So he waited until his opponent tried a particularly careless feint and stabbed him in the gut, dragging his knife up to the man’s throat and splitting him like a particularly annoying vegetable.

The deck was certainly going to need a good washing.

Jongho was wiping his knife clean on the sixth trader’s pantleg when he picked up on the quiet footsteps crossing the deck. They were too heavy to belong to Yeosang, Seonghwa or Hongjoong, but too light to belong to Yunho.

Trying to make the movement as natural as possible so that it wouldn’t tip off the person creeping about, the young pirate straightened to a standing position. Once the lurking figure was close enough to him, he spun. One knife found its way under the man’s throat and another drawn quickly rested against his stomach.

Wide-eyed, the stranger cautiously raised his hands. “Easy there, I didn’t come here to hurt you.”

“I find that hard to believe, considering that you boarded this ship without invitation and crept about like you were trying to be stealthy,” Jongho spat. “Who are you, and why are you here?”

“My name is Jaehyun, and you wouldn’t have spoken to me without the intrusion, of that I’m sure.” The stranger gazed over at the trader ship. “As it is, we don’t have much time. I doubt your captain will allow me to exchange words with you. Quite protective, isn’t he?”

Jongho leaned forward, the blade against Jaehyun’s throat breaking the skin. A thin line of blood welled against the sharp edge. “Say whatever it is you have to say, and _get off of this ship_.” He drew away, only enough that he wouldn’t slit the man’s throat when he was talking. “And never return.”

Unhurried, the man sighed. “Can you put the knives away until we’re done?”

“No.”

Looking like he’d swallowed one of Yeosang’s awful tinctures, Jaehyun cleared his throat. “Very well. Whisper tells that the Essada prince joined a pirate crew. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”

Jongho almost dropped his knives, but regained his composure quickly. “The prince of Essa could have never even left Essa.”

Jaehyun’s lips twitched. “He did.”

“No one _leaves_ Essa.”

“Ah.” Jaehyun smiled then. “But you and I both know _that_ isn’t true, don’t we? After your mother--”

Jongho’s blade ripped through Jaehyun’s throat, the young pirate’s hands shaking as he stumbled away from the stranger.

_The cold whisper of steel._

_Blood seeping into the cracks of the stone floor._

_Rough hands._

_Blood seeping into the cracks of the stone floor._

_The screams, the screams, the **screams**. _

_Blood seeping into the cracks of the stone floor._

Jongho pressed his hands over his ears and dropped to his knees, trying to drown out the sound of screams that repeated in the back of his mind. Or was he screaming?

Going off of how Yunho barrelled onto the deck moments later, Jongho was screaming.

 

* * *

 

“They had no slaves, no manacles, not even cages. The ship was barren of all but crew and supplies,” Hongjoong stated.

“It was very strange,” Yeosang remarked, tying off a bandage around the captain’s arm. One of the traders had gotten in a lucky blow while Hongjoong was distracted, but was cut down by Seonghwa in retaliation.

Curled into Yunho’s side, considerably calmer, Jongho frowned. He had a sinking suspicion he knew why the trader ship had been so barren.

“Why?” the saw-bones asked, and Jongho realized he must have voiced his thoughts.

“...There’s only one group of traders that would ever rid themselves of their manacles, cages, and all of their slaves before sailing into a port they wouldn’t be trading at.” Jongho clutched Yunho’s hand like a lifeline, squeezing until his knuckles turned white. “And they’re the worst of the worst. They make… they make sex dealers pale in comparison.”

“What’s worse than a sex dealer?” Yunho questioned.

Face pallid, Seonghwa pushed himself to his feet. “I… I think I’m going to be sick,” he whispered, and wobbled away with an expression full of misery. Jongho had known the first mate would realize quickly what he meant.

The young pirate slowly released Yunho’s hand and drew one of his knives, turning it between his fingers. “Child slavers, Yunho.”

(Somewhere in the background, Jongho could hear Seonghwa as he retched.)

“Child slavers.” Yeosang’s jaw was set with fury. “Of course we’d catch child slavers with an empty vessel.”

An empty vessel meant that the children had been sold, and the evidence of child slavery disposed of. An empty vessel meant that the _Promise_ had no chance to save any of the children from a life of slavery.

“There are more out there,” Jongho whispered, sliding his knife into its sheath and wrapping his arms around his stomach. “Child slavers aren’t rare.”

“While that is true, they rarely come to ports like Lithura - even if their vessel is empty of slaves. It’s a risk most of them refuse to take.”

Hongjoong rose. “Excuse me while I check on Seonghwa.”

“If I’d known they were dealing in children, their deaths would have been far more painful,” Yunho swore.

It was a sentiment that was shared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is late, and short, because I forgot to work on it this weekend and I still haven't done my homework and I'm back to school tomorrow yikes D: so I'm sorry it sucks and it's on the shorter side but I got sidetracked and dgjndkgjng D:


	17. [016] The Market

After the incident with the child slavers, the crew seemed to be walking on eggshells around Jongho, as though he’d snap at the slightest of noise. It was almost upsetting, but at the same time, Jongho could understand why they were concerned about him. He was with child and they had encountered the worst of any slavers. Of course there would be concern and the thought that he might be on the fragile side because of that incident.

But he wasn't.

Jongho had certainly been shaken by the presence of the slavers, and he was still a little shaken up, but not to the extent that he needed to be treated like a delicate piece of china. He wasn't delicate in the slightest.

So he deemed, as he rinsed out his mouth after his regularly scheduled morning vomiting. Jongho hated waking up, throwing up, having an upset stomach, and dealing with the crew treating him like some kind of damsel in distress. He wasn't one. He was the same boy he'd always been and he was still capable of holding his own in a fight. Hell, he'd proven it several times, but they still tried to keep him from doing much of anything.

Leaving his quarters behind, Jongho made his way up to the deck, leaving his shirt unlaced as he climbed into the sunlight. He squinted against the bright light and cozied over to Seonghwa, who leaned against the rail with an apple in hand while he stared out at the horizon, expression deeply thoughtful as though he was contemplating something of deep interest to him. Jongho wanted to know what was so interesting, but he didn't want to bother Seonghwa and just stood watching him instead, chin resting in his hands.

The first mate finally noticed his presence, turning away from the rail and greeting Jongho with a small smile. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Jongho answered. "Well enough to rearrange the hold."

"Absolutely not," Seonghwa vetoed.

"Seonghwa--"

"No," the first mate said firmly. "You are _not_ going to be rearranging the hold. You're in no shape to be doing any heavy lifting, Jongho. How many times have we had to tell you this?"

Jongho scowled. "I'm bored, Seonghwa. I want to get back to my duties."

"And you'll be able to -- _after_ your daughter comes into the world," Seonghwa added. "Until then, no. The answer will not change, no matter how many times you ask."

Jongho made a sound in the back of his throat and slunk away to sit down with his back against the rail, hands resting on the deck beside him.

_Damn you, Mingi._

Deep down he knew that it was as much his fault as it was Mingi's, but it was easy to blame the captain of the _Twilight_ while he wasn't there and didn't even know that they had a child. He didn’t even know that Jongho was pregnant.

"Copper for your thoughts?" Yunho asked as he took a seat beside Jongho and put an arm around the younger pirate’s shoulders. He pulled him closer, ruffling his hair.

"No," Jongho murmured. "I’m not thinking of much.”

Oh, what a liar he was.

But Yunho merely nodded and accepted what Jongho had said as the truth, as he always did. "Basking in the sun again?”

"It's one of the few things that I'm allowed to do," he groused. "Hongjoong and Seonghwa restrict me in everything else."

 

* * *

 

“I just want to get off of the ship and stretch my legs, I won’t even try to carry anything!”

The _Promise_ was again docked for a supply run, and Jongho was trying to convince Hongjoong and Seonghwa to allow him to accompany them off of the ship. It had been too long since he had been allowed off of the ship in the light of the day, and he was stooping so low as to agree (more accurately, bargain with) that he wouldn’t even attempt to do anything the other members of the crew would consider _strenuous_ while on land.

Hongjoong and Seonghwa exchanged glances, and the captain sighed. “Jongho—”

“ _Please_ ,” Jongho interrupted. “I’m going stir-crazy stuck on the _Promise_ like this.”

After a moment, Hongjoong sighed once again, but this time, he relented. “You may accompany us, Jongho, but only to stretch your legs. Seonghwa and I will acquire the things we need.”

Jongho could accept this exchange, and practically bounced after them when they strode across the deck and down the gangplank. He was excited to leave the ship and get exercise that wasn’t confined to the space of the deck, as he had been for what felt like ages. And under the light of the sun, at that!

The market was crowded, filled with seamen and citizenry alike. Jongho stuck close to Seonghwa, the first mate’s aura enough to repel anyone who dared make a second glance at the three of them. Hongjoong was fairly unassuming with his mullet tucked under his feathered cap and a long coat concealing his weaponry, but Seonghwa always emanated danger.

Merchants called out to them, trying to sell their wares, and pickpockets milled throughout the streets, but the three pirates stayed on-task. Hongjoong and Seonghwa surveyed the goods around them in search of what they wanted, while Jongho merely enjoyed the stroll through the marketplace and kept an eye out to ensure that no one tried to help themselves to the contents of Hongjoong or Seonghwa’s pockets.

However, while Jongho was watching a street urchin that had edged a bit too close, it was another child that caught his attention. One with wrists and ankles wrapped in shackles that clanked pitifully as she stumbled after a tall man that appeared to be journeying deeper into the market.

Reaching behind him, Jongho tugged Hongjoong’s sleeve and tilted his head in the direction of the child slave when the captain turned to him.

“Are they in the market?” Hongjoong asked quietly.

“It looks like he’s journeying in and not leaving. I think he’s trying to sell,” Jongho whispered.

Hongjoong nodded. “Let’s go, then,” he commanded, and strode away from the stall he had been surveying. The small cluster of three followed the slaver, Seonghwa’s hand hidden inside one of his coat pockets -- where a small knife was squirreled away. Jongho knew that the first mate was probably dying to use it on the man dragging the small child behind him, but they had to be wiser about how they were going to handle the situation. In the event that he wasn’t the only slaver in the market, they didn’t want trouble where others could see and come to the man’s aid.

As the slaver slowed to a halt, so did they, pretending to survey the market as they drew nearer to him. He seemed to notice their approach only when they were near enough to see both him and the child clearly.

The girl appeared to about five, and was dirty and skinny, the sort of bony-thin that would make anyone with a heart feel sick to see on a child. Her clothes were in tatters and her face was bruised, hair matted with grease and dirt and unidentifiable substances, but perhaps what made Jongho ache most were the heavy manacles that dug into her wrists and ankles and left the skin red and puffy.

The young pirate couldn’t look away from her, his gut churning with anger and disgust with the trader who held the chain that was attached to the shackles around her wrists. The small child met his eyes with a gaze full of distrust and fear, accompanied by a bitterness that was heartrending to see in someone so young.

All Jongho could think about was how long she had potentially been in slavery.

“How much for the girl?”

The trader looked Hongjoong up and down and sneered. “Two bricks of Essada gold.”

“Unfortunately, I don’t have any Essada gold on me at this moment. Would you care to accompany me back to my ship?” the captain inquired with a pleasant smile. Were Jongho not so preoccupied with worrying about the child, he might have marveled at Hongjoong’s acting.

“Send a runner or the deal’s off. I don’t trust your type,” the slaver spat.

Hongjoong heaved a sigh of feigned disinterest and flicked his hand dismissively at the first mate. “Very well. Seonghwa, please run back to the _Promise_ and retrieve a brick of Essada gold.”

“A brick?! The price is _two_!” the man protested.

“No one will pay two bricks of Essada gold for a child as sickly and malnourished as this one is. It will cost us a brick merely to get her strong enough to work on the ship. Paying you a brick for her would already be an overpay. She is not worth half a brick,” Hongjoong stated, his voice cold and rigid as Seonghwa departed. “You should be grateful that you found a customer willing to pay a single brick for such a fragile creature.”

“I—”

“And if you are showing her to the market, she is the best of your collection,” Hongjoong finished. “Or perhaps she is all you have left, and so you plan to sell her for more than she is worth.”

The pretense of buying the girl made Jongho feel sick, the young pirate swallowing down bile and turning his gaze away from the child and the slaver. It seemed like an eternity passed before Seonghwa returned with the brick of gold, passing the treasure into Hongjoong’s hands before taking up station beside Hongjoong.

The exchange was made, and the pirates left the market with haste. Once away from prying eyes, Seonghwa swung the girl up off of the ground to carry her so that they could run to the _Promise_ , Hongjoong shedding his coat in haste.

“What the hell is going on?” Yeosang demanded when they burst onto the ship and Seonghwa set the child down. “Hongjoong, is that—”

“Yunho, Seonghwa, come with me. Yeosang, you and Jongho see about getting those chains off of that child,” the captain ordered. He dropped his coat on the deck, turning back toward the gangplank. “We’re going to find the trader ship and destroy those slavers.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> h-hi...?


	18. [017] Jinsol

“Why?”

The girl asked the single-word question while Jongho was trying to remove her shackles, those distrust-filled eyes never leaving him for a moment. The young pirate paused before returning to what he was doing, fighting with the rusted metal.

“Why what?”

“Why did your captain buy me? There’s places t’ buy better slaves,” the girl elaborated.

“His intention wasn’t to buy a slave,” Jongho explained, trying not to let the unease from her nonchalant remark bleed into his voice. “It was a ploy to prevent a scene in the marketplace. Trying to just snatch you from him or attack him would have been foolish. He wasn’t fool enough to follow Hongjoong when he asked him to come back to the Promise for the gold, so… the captain had to make a purchase.”

“I don’t trust you,” the girl muttered, staring at Yeosang’s hands. The saw-bones was having more luck getting the shackles off of her wrists than Jongho was her ankles.

“You don’t have to,” Yeosang said firmly, finally getting the metal off and throwing it over the side of the ship. “Trust is earned, not just given. You are not the first child whose trust this crew has had to earn.”

The girl gave him an odd look at that and said nothing, holding her chafed, red wrists close to her body. This, of course, did not escape Yeosang’s notice, and he scooted away to retrieve the bag of emergency supplies he always carried with him.

“Will you let me take a look at those?” he asked as he returned.

Her eyes flitted between Jongho and Yeosang, like she was weighing her odds and trying to decide whether or not it was worth it. Eventually she held her hands out in silent permission, letting Yeosang examine them to see what he could do for her.

“Why did you and your captain want to take me from the slaver?” the girl finally asked, breaking a tense silence.

Jongho bit his lip. “It wasn’t about just taking from the slaver. It was about freeing you from slavery, and finding his ship so we, or the captain at least, can do the same for the rest of his…. wares.”

“There are twelve others,” the girl divulged. “Most of ’em are younger than me, but a couple are older.”

“And how old are you?” inquired Yeosang. He’d moved on from examining her wrists to whipping up a salve to apply on them.

“Six years, maybe.” The girl shrugged. “It’s hard to tell how much time passes on the slave ships.”

“Do you…” Jongho halted, finally getting one of the shackles off. “Do you have a name? Mine is Jongho, and he is Yeosang.”

After a moment, the girl uttered, “Jinsol. My name is Jinsol.”

Jongho nodded, working on the other shackle. The sooner it was off, the better. He was sure their proximity to Jinsol was not helping her be any less uncomfortable, but the chains needed removed and her raw wrists and ankles tended before they could back away and let her have her space.

“Do you have a family we can return you to?” Yeosang inquired, gently rubbing the salve into the girl’s wrists.

Jinsol shook her head. “My parents are dead and I knew no other family before the slavers took me.”

Jongho and Yeosang shared a glance, the young pirate trying to convey his feelings through his gaze like he had seen Seonghwa and Hongjoong do so many times.

Yeosang, however, just sighed. “We will figure something out.”

 

* * *

 

Jinsol stayed on the far side of the deck, away from Yeosang and Jongho, until the other members of the crew returned. She was wrapped in one of Jongho’s jackets, the only article of clothing she would accept from either of them during the wait, and it absolutely drowned her tiny structure. It would have been adorable under different circumstances, and if her face wasn’t so thin and frail.

There were indeed twelve children with Hongjoong, Seonghwa, and Yunho when they returned, most of them small children around Jinsoul’s age or younger, but one appearing to be around eleven or twelve. He had most of the youngest-looking children clustered around him, herding them like a mother. He seemed even more wary than Jinsol was, eyes constantly flitting about him as though the _Promise_ ’s crew would suddenly turn on the children.

“Have they anywhere to go?” was the first question Yeosang asked, striding toward Hongjoong.

“Most of them do,” the captain replied. “Only a few of them do not. Including her,” he added, nodding to Jinsol, who was pulling herself to her feet and approaching slowly.

“ _Jinsol, come here_ ,” the boy commanded in Essada, looking quite relieved to see her. She scurried over and he brought her close, the other children huddling around her. “ _Are you hurt?_ ”

“ _No. They freed me. They say they want to set us free and send us home_.” Jinsol glanced at Jongho and then at Yeosang. “ _Do you think they’re really going to let us go free, Renjun_?”

“ _I can’t say, Jinsol. They seem sincere enough, but trusting them is difficult. They’re pirates_.” Renjun surveyed the deck of the Promise and grimaced. “ _But right now, anything is better than the situation we were in. At least now we’re not in chains and headed to market_.”

The girl pulled Jongho’s jacket closer around her and stepped around the long trailing cloth to move closer to the oldest of the child slaves. “ _What if they try to sell us at another market? They could._ ”

“ _Who would put in this much work for slaves_?” Renjun asked. “ _There would have been much easier ways to acquire and sell child slaves. Healthier ones, too._ ”

Jongho didn’t want to hear any more of their conversation. It was already turning his stomach - the thought of selling a child was too much. He decided to escape below, taking refuge in his quarters and sitting on the edge of his cot.

Two bricks of Essada gold.

It was a fact that child slaves were rarely sold for two bricks of Essada gold, even with the ever-evolving values of different ‘wares’ in the trade. One brick was closer to standard, but even that was often pushing it. If they had certain attributes, came from specific bloodlines or certain countries, or were specifically trained for particular tasks, however, the price would go up. Jongho unfortunately knew how the market for child slaves worked, and that the monsters who bought from them would pay more if they were getting what they considered a more valuable slave.

Those thoughts weren’t helping the young pirate feel any less like he was going to be sick, but he couldn’t drive them away. The predicament the children had been in, and that many others were in, were at the forefront of his thoughts and would undoubtedly remain there for a period.

People were monsters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is... bad. very bad. i suck. D:

**Author's Note:**

> Rating may increase, we'll see.


End file.
